


One For The Money

by RoyaltyAndRenegades



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers Mafia AU, Avengers Tower, F/M, I know where this is going but i don't know where this is going, M/M, Mafia AU, Protective Avengers, Protective Bucky Barnes, Protective Steve Rogers, Protective Tony Stark, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-10
Updated: 2019-12-29
Packaged: 2020-01-10 22:21:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 37,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18417032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoyaltyAndRenegades/pseuds/RoyaltyAndRenegades
Summary: Recently orphaned by the death of his Aunt May sixteen-year-old Peter Parker finds himself playing a dangerous game with an up and coming thief known only to most as the Black Cat. He knows her as Felicia Hardy, and he’s about to help her knock the toughest mafia in New York down a few pegs. Together, they’re going to rob the Avengers.





	1. The Spider and The Cat

As Peter Parker stares down the barrel of a gun, he supposes that it all went wrong after he agreed to hear a plan from a girl named Felicia Hardy.

**One Week Earlier . . .**

“Fel, I’m heading out to grab some Chinese food. What do you want?” Peter yells.

“Just get me some Lo Mein, rice, and those spicy green beans I like.” Felicia yells back from the bedroom.

The dilapidated Queens apartment isn’t much, but its home, and all they could afford. Walking down the stairs, Peter shook his head in disbelief. How has it already been almost three months since Aunt May died? It’s amazing how so much has changed since then.

Peter still doesn’t know what happened to his old apartment with her. As soon as he could slip away from the hospital, he made a made dash for their apartment, grabbed anything he couldn’t live without, and never looked back. It was worth it really. Sure, he had to give up the fancy gifted high school, but he still sees Ned and M.J. around. Anything would be better than being thrown in the system only to be moved from one stranger’s house to the next.

It was only when Peter returned to the apartment with two steaming bags of food that he realized something was wrong. Normally, Felicia would throw open the door before he could knock so that she could get her hands on whatever food was available. Tonight, he was met with silence as he unlocked the door and stepped inside. Setting the bags on the counter, his eyes searched the beige walls with their pealing paint for any sign of a poster, notecard, or letter which might indicate where she had run off to. When he saw nothing, he let out a deep sigh.

 _Only one place left to check._ He thought bitterly.

Walking towards their shared bedroom, well bedroom was a bit of an exaggeration for the mattress on the floor piled high with blankets and pillows, he pushed open the door to be met with the same emptiness as when he first arrived home.

_Alright, this might not be so bad. Maybe she just went for a walk or decided to pick something up from the store. She isn’t gone._

Peter steeled himself as he opened the wardrobe’s false back wall where he knew she kept her suit. It was gone.

Cursing loudly, Peter said to himself, “I’m going to kill her when she gets back.”

 

* * *

 

Felicia Hardy crept soundlessly up the fire escape and through the bedroom window at 2:35 AM. At the same time, she realized one Peter Parker was not already asleep in bed like she silently hoped he would be on her way back here. A minute later and Felicia was changing out of her midnight black leather suit and white combat boots to put on her sweats and one of Peter’s old shirts which no longer fit him. Careful to place the wig of flowing silver hair and the black googles back on the mannequin head, she prepares herself for what’s about to come. Then, at exactly 2:39 AM (she checked), Felicia Hardy walked out of the room carrying with her every ounce of swagger she no longer felt.

Said swagger dissipated completely when she saw the disappointed look in Peter’s eyes which made him look like ever the older brother he has grown to be since the moment she met him.

“I know what you’re going to say” she starts.

“Don’t.” Peter interrupts crisply.

Her mouth closes with an audible click as she waits for the conversation she knew was coming to commence. Any second now and he will be asking why she did it and berate her for falling into the same routine again.

“Was it the regular fence you work with or someone new?” Peter asks instead.

Surprised, Felicia takes a second to respond before answering, “same guy, but a new location. I staked it out for days prior to the exchange and everything checked out.” The unasked question of can we trust this fence settled with her response.

“What did you steal this time?”

 _Aaahhh._ _There it is. Time for our little dance to begin._ Felicia smiled wickedly to herself before beginning her story.

“A jewelry store. Think I ended up taking a little bit of everything in the shop by the end of it all. Quick snatch and grab. No witnesses and the cameras wouldn’t get any positive I.D.’s on my face, with or without the wig and goggles.”

“And the cash?”

“Got it right after the deal was done. As per usual. Here.” She says going back to the bedroom to show him the stacks of hundreds she received for the steal when Peter stops her.

“Save it for the morning. It’s late, let’s just go to bed.”

 _Well that’s new._ Felicia thinks before saying, “aren’t you going to read me the riot act? You know stealing’s bad and don’t trust fences?”

“Why should I?” Peter replies. “It hasn’t made a difference before, and I doubt it will stop you in the future.”

 _Ouch,_ she thought _, well there’s tough love for you._

Before she could say anything else, Peter continued, “besides, I trust you enough to know that you know your limits and that you are careful enough to do some . . . let’s say ‘preliminary research’ to make sure you aren’t walking blind into someone else’s trap.”

For the first time that night Felicia smiled. “Thank you, Spider. I trust you too by the way.” She said the second sentence far more softly than she intended, all the while staring at her foot as she traced it across the floor.

“What did I say about calling me Spider, you brat?”

“It’s a pretty good nickname if you ask me. Especially if you start going on missions with me.”

“Yeah, thanks but no thanks.” Peter replied. “I’m perfectly happy with my minimum wage job repairing computers. The sheer glamour of it is too much to pass up” The sarcasm dripping from his voice.

Rolling her eyes Felicia said, “whatever you say bro.”

Peter looked at Felicia for a moment. Taking in the bruises on her arms from crashing into a wall harder than she intended. The way her hair was still disheveled after spending so many hours trapped under a wig. If he looked closely enough, he could still see the faint lines left by her goggles tracing under both eyes and the bridge of her nose. It makes her look both invincible and breakable. Like this time, she got lucky, but maybe next time she won’t, and he’ll be dragging her to the free clinic as she holds a broken arm in place.

So maybe he didn’t yell at her for sneaking out and robbing the rich. Right now, all he really cared about is that she was home and safe. He can protect Felicia Hardy, but the Black Cat will run from Peter Parker every day of the damn week. The only person the Cat never runs from is Spider-Man. Too bad Peter killed him the day he lost Aunt May. He only wishes Cat would see things his way for once.

Instead of saying any of that to her, Peter shakes his head, smiles, and throws an arm around Felicia’s shoulders.

 _Yeah, we’ll be alright_ , Peter thinks.

The two settled into an amenable silence as they made their way to the bedroom. Both unaware to what would await them in the coming weeks and how it would change their lives, for better or worse, forever.


	2. I have a plan. You in?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Black Cat begins her stakeout, but things are not all that they seem. Soon, our daring thief will find out that the stakes for what was supposed to be a simple heist are much higher than she thought. Can she handle the challenge, or will the Black Cat finally get in over her head?

“Black Cat, do you copy? Black Cat?” The comm crackled to life in her ear.

“Black Cat come in” Peter’s voice continued.

Raising a hand to her ear Felicia said, “Black Cat here. What’s the situation Spider?”

Peter’s reply was instant. “You need to run. NOW!”

“What-” She didn’t get a chance to finish. She heard the sound of boots running through the halls a second before the alarms flared to life.

In that moment, the Black Cat’s only thought was run.

**Four Days Earlier . . .**

Felicia Hardy, or for the moment the Black Cat, was perched on the fire escape of an ancient brownstone. With her silver wig pulled back into a slick ponytail, she bobbed her head to the music blasting through the black iPod Peter bought her for her sixteenth birthday. The music filled her ears as she stared at the building across the street, watching the guards and monitoring for security cameras throughout the place. From what she had gathered since she got to the fire escape three hours ago, this place is practically a fortress. Guard changes move like clockwork, which is helpful for her on most days, but the time between when the old guards leave and the new ones come in is so short that she’ll have to begin the break-in before the guard change, and duck into and out of the hallways during the change itself.

Of course, this is all assuming the vents don’t have some sort of security system in place to electrocute, maim, and/or laser her into a million little pieces. She could try to get through a window…but, no… that will never work. Even if she can get through during the guard change, she’s pretty sure if they don’t notice her, they will notice a giant hole through the window of a skyscraper.

_Ugh!!!!! I should have taken the Hell’s Kitchen job. I’m never getting through this place alone._

Well, her inner voice tells her sarcastically, you could have taken the job if you weren’t so damn scared of running into that red acrobat Daredevil.

Daredevil. The vigilante bent on protecting, what, a _block_ of New York City. It’s not that Felicia considers herself a threat to the citizens of New York, but she does like to think of herself as a thorn in the sides of the one percent. Not like they’ll really miss anything she steals from them. Though she would much rather not risk the ever-elusive Daredevil’s wrath should she come off as a threat to his fare street corner. 

Anyways, she has more important things to worry about right at the moment. Namely, figuring out how to break into this place without being seen. Or if that’s not possible on any level, then how to break in without getting caught.

The night drags on to ten o’clock and Felicia is still hidden in the shadows but has moved from the fire escape to the roof of her building, seeing if she can scout for a new entry point. Her target building is close enough in height to where she can get a general lay of the land without having to risk a closer look from the taller building next door to it. Taking her binoculars out of her pack, she sets them to focus on the roof. She spies a few vents which look rather promising, and there doesn’t seem to be any wiring attached to the vents on the outside, which leads her to believe that lasers and co didn’t set up shop there after all. Overall, the roof is looking like her best shot at getting whatever score her fence wants from there. Plus, the no guards thing helps a lot with her getting in and out.

It’s the lack of guards that jolts her awake from her plotting. _No guards, huh. There’s got to be something else guarding the place for them,_ she thinks.

Zooming the binoculars into focus on the door, she begins to look it over for cameras when she sees it. One state-of-the-art motion sensor. That thing will go off the second she steps on the roof, and guards will be swarming it seconds later. And when there’s one motion sensor, there’s usually others at different corners of the roof.

If she wants even a minor shot at getting in, she’ll need some help disabling the sensors without setting off any alarms. A hacker would be ideal, but the only one she’s met (and trusts) is Peter’s old friend from that genius school. What was his name again? Come on…liked Star Wars…Ned! That was his name.

_He’s going to be a great man someday. I can’t risk him getting caught up in this._ Felicia thinks, _but how am I going to get rid of those sensors without him?_

No. Nope. Not doing it. Okay, so what other options are there? Blinding the cameras would work, but this place isn’t employing budget rent-a-cops to watch the cameras, so them going out would definitely cause some noise from the security rooms. Disabling the sensors outright would get the same results. Which brings us back to the hacker dilemma. There’s definitely no one she trusts enough to not try to rob her blind, which is why she gets paid in cash, and she doesn’t trust her fence enough to set her up with someone. She’s out of options…or maybe not.

Peter attended the genius school too, and he has helped with surveillance on other missions. Granted, those were glorified watch dog positions which only required him to yell for me if the police or a personal militia were coming for me. Either way, all he would really need to do is hack into the sensors and, instead of disabling them, set up a standard loop feed to make it seem like no one’s on the roof at all. That would give her enough time to get in and get out without raising any alarms. Plus, she could keep Peter on the building next door, which would allow him to remain out of the fray, but he would still be close enough to help her out.

All her planning made her forget that the music had stopped playing on her iPod. _Must have finished the album._

She goes to put on another one when she see that the iPod is flashing the little charge me symbol and it won’t be playing anything else tonight. The clock on her wrist watch reads 10:15 pm. Okay. She’ll give it another fifteen minutes, and then its back to the apartment for pizza and a movie with Peter.

The minutes tick by without a hitch and soon its time for her to pack up and leave for the night. She’s putting her binoculars back into the bag, when she catches movement on the seventeenth floor. The floor she’s supposed to rob if the intel is correct.

Checking the time on her watch she thinks, _I suppose I have a few more minutes to spare before I head home._

Quickly, she pulls out the binoculars and refocuses them onto the seventeenth floor. As the image becomes clearer, the binoculars show a team of security personnel marching through the hallway. Thinking it’s just another guard change, Felicia is about to go back to putting her gear away when she sees him.

No one could miss that man in a crowd. Standing at a cool six-feet tall is one of the most dangerous men in all of New York. Probably all the world if she was being honest.

Out from the elevator walks James Buchanan Barnes. One of the guys in charge of New York City’s most feared mafia, The Avengers. Though, what make’s dear James particularly dangerous is the fact that he is one of their best mercenaries. Second only to Black Widow and Hawkeye, though one could easily argue a three way tie between them.

Regardless, if he’s here, that means something is up with this place. All Felicia had to do now was figure out what. She watched as James walked from the elevator, down the hall, and toward a set of mahogany double doors at the far end of the hall. At one point he looked out the window and Felicia wasn’t quick enough to muffle her gasp. If she didn’t know any better, she would have sworn his steel blue eyes looked right at her. Never mind that she was hidden in shadows, wearing all black, and, oh yeah, across the street, it’s as if he knew she was there. Maybe it’s a sort of sixth sense a person develops after years spent looking over one’s shoulder. It unnerves her so much, she does a quick sweep of her rooftop refuge to make sure she’s still it’s only occupant.

No people are spotted, but there is a pigeon currently staring at her a few feet away.

“Hello pigeon. How are you this fine evening?” She said, cocking her head to the side. “You wouldn’t happen to be able to fly over to that building across the street and tell me what’s going on, would you?”

The pigeon gives no response but takes a few steps closer to her.

“Well you’re a friendly one. And Peter said I don’t make friends. I would tell you more, but I haven’t properly vetted you to ensure that you’re not one of The Avengers’ spies. Although, if I’m going to be stuck here for a while longer, I could tell you a few things, Agent Pigeon. Yes, I quite like that name for you, my little spy friend.”

Again, the pigeon makes no move to reply. “You’re not the chattiest, Agent Pigeon,” she said, “don’t worry, I get it, you’re more of the strong, silent types.”

Smiling at the little bird, she reaches into her bag and tosses her new friend the crumbs leftover from the granola bar she had earlier.

It takes almost an hour for Barnes to leave what she assumes to be a conference room. His bodyguards surround him like hawks ready for the kill. Barnes looks like a wolf who could rip any threat to shreds, with or without the birds flocking him.

He marches to the elevator and, thankfully, spares no glances towards Felicia’s humble rooftop. The doors close and she waits another few minutes until she sees his entourage step into a blacked-out Escalade parked in front of the building.

_Alright, no need to panic. The biggest gang in New York either owns or works with the people I need to rob. Even better, Frank didn’t bother to tell me any of this when I took the job. Great…_

“Agent Pigeon, I think I need to have a very serious conversation with Frank.” Felicia said. “Oh, Frank is the name of my fence, Agent.”

Standing up, she stretches her stiff muscles and finishes packing up the rest of her gear.

“Alright, I’ll see you later Agent. Hey, if you’re around the docks, do you think you and your fellow pigeon spies could attack Frank for me?” Felicia said with a wry smile on her face.

She could have sworn the pigeon nodded in the affirmative to her request. Fingers crossed the pigeon keeps his word.

 

* * *

 

 

Peter sits in the kitchen of their apartment heating up the leftovers from the other night. He’s about to turn on the TV for some background noise when he hears a knock. It sounds again and that’s when he realizes its coming from the bedroom window and not the front door.

_Shit! I forgot to leave the window unlocked for Felicia._

Peter sprints toward the bedroom and finds a very disgruntled Black Cat staring at him from her perch on the fire escape. Unlocking the window and pushing it up, Felicia steps into the room as regally as a queen.

“Welcome home. Thought you’d be here hours ago.” Peter idly said as he checks the time on his phone.

“Got held up on a stakeout, which turned into an impromptu meeting.” Felicia replied.

“A meeting? Is there something wrong with the job? Were you taken off it by Frank?”

“What? No. I might be new to the game, Peter, but Frank would be an idiot to take me off a job. I just needed to ask for some clarifications.”

Peter quirked an eyebrow before he said, “Clarification? On what exactly?”

“I’ll tell you in a minute. Give me a few minutes to change and we’ll talk about it over dinner.” Felicia replied with a wave of her hand.  

 

* * *

 

 

Peter sat himself down on the couch and, not five minutes later, Felicia emerged from the bedroom like a vision in Hello Kitty pajamas. She did a curtsy when she saw his barely suppressed smile at her _formal_ attire.

“Alright, so what’s going on with this heist?” Peter asks as Felicia sits herself down on the couch.

“Okay,” she starts, “you absolutely can’t freak out, but I think I’ve been hired to steal something from the Avengers.”

His breathing stops in an instant. “The _Avengers_?! You mean the top mafia in New York City…wait, scratch that, the world? That mafia?” He said incredulously.

“Haha…the very same one.”

“You told your fence…ummm…whatshisface no, right?” The hopefulness in Peter’s voice is palpable.

Felicia takes a deep breath before saying, “two things. First, his name is Frank. Second, I didn’t say no in those exact words, but I have a very good reason for it.”

“Now I have two things. First, Frank the fence? Really? That sounds like a fake name or a character from a children’s cartoon or something.”

“Well it probably is a fake name, Spider. Since, you know, everything he does is illegal. Also, what kind of children’s cartoons are you watching?”

“Point taken.” He mumbles. “But why didn’t you say no.”

Felicia looks into Peter’s dark brown eyes for a moment. She never realized how open they were until now. A person could read every emotion coursing through his body through them, and right now, they screamed worry. Worry that she was in way over her head this time and worry that Peter might not be able to save her if things go wrong. She liked how he was selfless like that.

_Oh Peter,_ she thought, _if I am ever caught, I’ll need to write you a book on why it wasn’t your fault and to stop blaming yourself, you sweet little nerd._

So, Felicia began the tale of what happened during her stakeout.

“Well it was a normal stakeout in the beginning. Watched a building, talked to a pigeon, listened to some music, but as I got a better look at the building, things weren’t adding up. The security was way too tight, and the guards moved like ex-navy seals with their precision. None of it made sense for a building in this neighborhood. Well, none of it made sense until James Buchanan Barnes walked through the doors with a private militia.”

“Barnes? Oh great, this keeps getting better.” Peter said.

“Not going to lie buddy, but I thought the same thing. Anyway, that’s not the big part. Let me tell you what happened when I went to see Frank at the docks.”

 

* * *

 

 

Felicia, donning her Black Cat ensemble, dropped from the support beams of the warehouse onto a mountain of stacked shipping crates. From her vantage point, she could see Frank seated facing away from her at his old oak desk, with a mountain of papers surrounding him. _He must be working on the money transactions from a deal._ Keeping her eyes on Frank – who was still oblivious to her presence – she made her way down the crates. It wasn’t until she got down to the bottom and Frank still hadn’t noticed her, that she decided to have a little fun with him. Call it minor payback for lying to her about the job.

She crept silently towards him, hiding herself in the shadows she calls home. Soon she was right by his desk.

Emerging from the darkness, she walked behind his chair, leaned forward, and whispered, “boo.”

That was all it took. Frank jumped so high he could have touched the ceiling. Felicia smiled like the cat who caught all the canaries and watched him fumble to pick up the papers he sent flying.

It took every ounce of willpower in her body to keep her from laughing at the fence’s flustered appearance. His curly black hair looked like it had passed through a wind tunnel, and his tie was currently flung over his shoulder. However, the Black Cat didn’t miss the scowl taking over his features and she definitely didn’t miss the pistol sitting on top of his desk.

Quick as a flash, the Black Cat lunged forward to retrieve the weapon. Vaulting over the desk, she landed gracefully on the other side with a shiny black pistol held tight in her left hand. She smirked at Frank’s shocked reaction to her stunt, but she was no fool. A man like Frank, while easy to scare because he was about as attuned to his surroundings as a rock, wouldn’t hesitate to shoot her between the eyes if he determined she was no longer worth the trouble of employing.

“Ahhh, the Black Cat. To what do I owe the _pleasure_?” Frank said with a sneer.

“I was in the neighborhood and I thought I’d visit my favorite fence.” She said.

“How kind of you to think of me.” The sneer still hadn’t left Frank’s rather unfortunate face.

_I’ll have to change that_. Black Cat thought.

“In fact, I just got done with a stakeout for that new job you signed me up for and I saw some very interesting people there.”

The sneer on Frank’s face vanished in an instant. Black Cat saw his eyes dart briefly to the loaded gun in her hand, and for a second she could see him contemplating taking it from her outright. _Hah! No chance that’s going to happen, Frank. I’m not in the mood to let you off easy this time._ Thought the Black Cat.

Frank forcibly relaxed the muscles in his face before speaking again. “I’m sure you see interesting people all the time at jobs. I don’t see why you feel the need to tell me about it.”

_How quaint. He’s playing dumb._

“Oh, I do Frank. Except, this time the person I saw was very interesting. Tell me, Frank, does the name James Buchanan Barnes ring any bells?” Black Cat made a show of admiring the gun as she spoke. Silently relishing how Frank’s body tenses and beads of sweat begin to form along his brow.

“Um…you see…w-well.” Frank stammers to find the right words to appease the Cat as her rage begins to simmer to the surface. “I only put you on the job because I knew you could handle it.”

There is no reply at first, but then, the unmistakable sound of a gun cocking fills the quiet warehouse. The Black Cat levels the weapon at her – possibly former – fence’s head.”

“Flattery, while appreciated, will get you nowhere.” Black Cat snarls. “What I would love to know is why you signed me up for this job without telling me I’d be robbing the Avengers?”

“Look kid-”

A warning shot is fired at the desk before the Cat tersely said, “patronizing the person with a gun to your head isn’t the smartest plan, Frank. Now, quit beating around the bush and tell me why you put me on this job.”

“It’s not that simple-” He starts.

“Make it simple.” She said coldly.

“No one else would take the job.” Frank said finally. “The minute they found out what they were stealing and who they were stealing it from, they all backed out. So, I made an executive decision to omit that information.”

“You _omitted_ that information?”

“Yes.” He said. Shrinking away as she continued to point the gun at him.

“Alright, now that we’ve cleared out your lies, we can get down to business.” She spoke with a lazy smirk.

“Get down to business?” Frank asked. Relaxing minutely at the prospect of her not shooting at him.

“If I steal this painting, the very painting none of your other thieves would touch, then I get better jobs and a higher cut.”

“And if I say no?” Frank questioned. That ugly sneer was starting to come back. She would have to fix that.

Instead of replying, she shot the other corner of his desk. Frank dropped from his chair to the floor. With ice in her voice, the Black Cat said, “I repeat. Do we have a deal?”

Reluctantly, the fence nodded his head. “Yes, Black Cat, we have a deal.”

“Good. I’ll call you when the job’s done.”

With that, Black Cat shot one final bullet into the lightbulb above them. Thus, plunging them in darkness. She dashed to the mountain of shipping crates and scaled them with a practiced ease. Like a cat she leapt onto the support beams before the fence could make it to the light switch on the other side of the room. He filled the room with light once more, but it was too late. Black Cat had already made it to the skylight she crawled in from and onto the roof.

Looking at the warm pistol in her hand, she unloaded the bullets and left the gun on the roof. Then, she repelled down the side of the building and crept her way out of the docks.

 

* * *

 

“You see why I didn’t say no to the job now?” Felicia asked Peter hopefully from the couch of their Queens’ apartment.

“I see a bunch of seasoned thieves who were so afraid of the Avengers they figured the score wasn’t worth it.” Peter replied. The doubt in her reasoning, and potential sanity, evident.

“No. What you see is a new thief who has a shot to steal what others couldn’t. If I pull this off, I’ll be in the big leagues. We can finally make some real money from these jobs. Not the table scraps Frank gives me after he takes his cut.” Her eyes are pleading as she speaks.

Peter stands up and begins to pace the room. “I don’t care how much money we’ll make in the long-run. None of it will matter if your caught and killed by the mafia.”

It’s silent in the apartment for a long moment after Peter says the words they were both thinking. Finally, with clenched fists and jaw saw set in grim determination, Felicia breaks the silence. 

“Look, I’m doing the job no matter what you say. I can’t pass up this opportunity, but I can’t do it without you either.”

“Is that what all this is about, you need my help? Or, let me rephrase that, you need Spider-Man’s help?” Peter asked. The anger slipping into his voice once he realized why Felicia was telling him all about this mission.

“Actually, I only need Peter Parker for this job. I get it. Spider-Man is retired.”

Felicia said.

“I should have known you needed my help with this job,” Peter said. “You barely tell me any of the details since you started working with your new fence. I miss when you worked with Nitro. At least then you got to tell me about these jobs and you weren’t getting screwed over with payments.”

“I miss him too, but he’s in jail and I had to move on.” Nitro was her first, and currently best, fence. He took her in when she was just starting out and taught her everything she knows about thieving, from picking locks to repelling down the side of a building. He was old school. Probably the best thief when he was younger, and an even better fence when he was older.

Nitro wasn’t overconfident, but he wasn’t as careful as the Black Cat. Where she strayed from angering fellow thieves or clients, he didn’t mind ruffling a few feathers. One day, he messes with the wrong group, they got wind of it, and that was it. Then, she had to work for the only fence who would even talk to her, which to her disdain, was Frank. Now, she gets cheated out of her pay until she can find a new fence to work with, and not for. In the end, the life of a thief means moving on and depending on no one but yourself.

_What am I doing?_ She thought. _There’s no time for reminiscing. Right now, I have a job to do._

“Peter,” she said, “I have a plan to rob the Avengers, but I need to know, are you in?”

It was a solid ten minutes before Peter stopped his pacing and looked at her again. He had reached his decision.

“I’m in.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm going to try and get Chapter 3 posted sooner, so fingers crossed. I just saw Endgame and wow. I loved it, but I am not okay. It feels like the end of an era.  
> Anyway, I hope you all have a great day/night. Thanks again for reading!
> 
> P.S. For anyone wondering, the Avengers will be mentioned more in Chapter 3 and I am hoping at least some of them will make an appearance by Chapter 4 or 5. I really want to establish the story and build the foundation of Peter and Felicia's friendship.


	3. Maybe it's personal.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicia tells Peter about the Avengers team and they go over the plan for tomorrow's heist.

“Down!!!” Peter screamed.

Fueled by trust in Peter, adrenaline, and instinct, Felicia dropped to the ground without a moment’s hesitation.

Bullets rained down where she was previously standing, shattering the window behind her.

_Perfect._

**One day earlier…**

In twenty-four hours, Peter Parker would be aiding the Black Cat in robbing one of the most feared and powerful mafias in the world. Today, Peter Parker is just a sixteen-year-old boy on a date in Queens with a girl name Michelle Jones, or as her friends call her, MJ.

MJ’s gorgeous. With her bright eyes and tightly curled hair, she looks like a supermodel in jeans and a t-shirt. Not to mention her wit makes her one of the few people Felicia can tolerate, and laugh with, for extended periods of time. He’s happy for both of them. MJ has another friend who understands her, and Felicia has a friend who knows about her history.

It had been a shock for Peter when MJ figured out that he was Spider-Man, but she’s very observant, and Ned has never grasped the subtly of keeping a secret identity secret, even though it’s been a year since Ned found out about it. Really, it’s a miracle more people hadn’t found out about Spider-Man solely from Ned.

His train of thought is broken by MJ’s voice. “Hey loser, you still with me?”

Her hazel eyes are searching his as he attempts to remember what they were talking about. As if MJ can read his mind, which she probably can, he honestly wouldn’t put it past her, she said, “the Cat’s got you in on another job hasn’t she?”

Sighing in defeat, Peter said, “how’d you know?”

“I mean, it’s pretty obvious. You get all spacy and you’re face looks like you’re carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders.” MJ said. Giving Peter a light shove on his shoulder. “Want to tell me what its about? I haven’t seen you like this since her old fence got arrested.”

“She got a new job.” Peter starts, he quickly searches the street. With too many people surrounding them on the busy street, he grabs her hand and leads her into the alley. Far enough away from prying eyes and listening ears, he continues. “She was supposed to rob a painting from this office in Brooklyn, but when she was running surveillance on the place, she caught sight of Barnes.”

“Barnes? As in James Barnes?” MJ looked shocked, well, he thinks she was shocked. He got two slightly raised eyebrows, and he could have sworn her eyes widened for a second.

“Yep, and she still wants to do the job.” Peter throws his hands up in exasperation.

“Why?” MJ asked. Her head tilted and a contemplative look on her face.

Peter sighed. “She wants to prove herself. Ever since Nitro went to jail, she’s been stuck with the same lousy fence, and she figures if she can rob the impossible, then she’ll be getting better offers in no time.”

“Are you sure it’s not more than that?”

That stops him short for a moment. “What?” He asked.

“Are you sure it’s not more than that?” MJ repeated. “She’s good. I’ve read about her crimes online and in the papers. There’s probably a dozen other high-profile jobs she can take, without risking death by mafia, that will show she’s better than everyone else.”

“None as high-profile as this. No thief will touch it. She’ll become a legend with this gig.”

“No, she’s smarter than this. I think this is personal for her.” MJ finally says after a minute of letting his words sink in.

“Personal?” Peter asked. “This isn’t personal, it’s an expansion pack for her ego.”

“If you’re so sure about that, then ask her yourself.” She said.

Before Peter could say anything else on the matter, MJ grabbed his hand and pulled him out of the alley. Once they had reentered the flow of sidewalk traffic she said, “come on, Parker, we still need to grab some lunch before the movie.”

Peter smiled, and maybe held onto her hand a little tighter. In twenty-four hours, everything would change, but for now, the world was beautiful and safe with MJ.

 

* * *

 

_Where is he?_ Felicia thought as she paced around the living room. _He was supposed to be here an hour ago. Wait. This thought process, I’m turning into Peter!_

She flopped onto the couch and immediately put her head in her hands.

“How could I let that goody two shoes rub off on me like this. What have I become?” She said to herself. Wallowing in her own exaggerated self-pity.

“Where’s Agent Pigeon when I need him?” She had to physically restrain herself from sitting out on the fire escape to look for the stupid bird, but honestly, she didn’t know what else to do.

This whole plan relied on Peter’s skills with tech, and if it worked, she would be getting bigger and better jobs which would make them set for life. They could afford an actual bedframe and not just a mattress. Enough cash and they could get a new apartment, with two bedrooms and water that ran when you needed it and not when it felt like it.

The clock ticks on to 6:45 when she hears the rustle of keys entering the front door lock. A second later and Peter Parker, the man of the last two hours, waltzes in with the stupidest grin on his face she’s ever seen.

“Peter Benjamin Parker, where have you been?!” She yelled whilst launching herself towards Peter. As she wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace, she smelled the faint scent of cinnamon and vanilla. MJ’s scent.

“So how was MJ?” Felicia asked. A coy smile playing across her lips.

“Fine.” Peter replied dismissively. Clearly trying to steer the conversation to a new topic as he made his way to the kitchen.

“Seemed better than fine to me. By the way, tell MJ I just love her new perfume.” The bright red hue Peter’s face took on was enough to send her into a fit of laughter.

Rolling his eyes, he sent her an unamused look before he said, “let’s run through the plan again. You know, be prepared or whatever.”

She didn’t stop laughing. She really tried, but the combination of Peter’s face and pre-mission stress sent her mind into a temporary fit of insanity.

“Come on, Cat.” His smile betrayed the slight whine in his voice.

Soon enough, the two teens were seated on the coach with blueprints, documents, and papers filled with Felicia’s hurried handwriting, spread out on the coffee table.

“Okay,” Felicia said pointing to the first item on her agenda. Reaching forward she grabbed a stack of papers and laid them on her lap. “Before you get the run down on the plan again, I want to show you The Avengers we need to worry about. I’ve been working on this since dawn.”

Picking up the first paper in her pile, she handed it to Peter. He looked down to see the unmistakable face of one Tony Stark.

“Alright,” Felicia began, “Tony Stark. He’s never been listed as a confirmed member of the Avengers to the public, or political, eyes of the world, but, according to the criminal world, this guy was one of the founding members. It’s said it happened after that unfortunate trip to Afghanistan in ’08, he came back with that arc reactor in his chest and murdered Stane for feeding him to the terrorists in the first place. After that, he became obsessed with maintaining his power. His trust level was down to zero and he worked alone until 2012. Which is when the Avengers first came on the scene as a major player. It’s said he funds them and builds their weapons. Near as I can tell, Stark and Rogers are like co-team leaders, so to speak.”

“Hold on, you’re telling me that Tony Stark, a genius billionaire and philanthropist, is an Avenger?” Peter asked.

“Yes. They refer to his as Iron Man. You’ll notice as we go on through the list that they all use names like this. It clearly works well if only the criminal underground can say they’re, like, 80% sure he’s an Avenger.” Felicia replied.

“I had a picture of him in my room growing up.” Peter said. “Are you sure the 20% who don’t think he’s a criminal are right?”

“Sorry to ruin your childhood Pete, but one of the 80 was shot by him in the leg and another saw him meeting up with Barnes and Rogers.” Felicia said. “Also, the 20 who don’t think he’s an Avenger just think that. They have a theory he’s running his own organization out of Stark Industries, but only contacts the Avengers for matters that might concern them. Trust me, no one wants to step on the Avenger’s toes. Now, are you going to interrupt me again, or can I get through this list? Otherwise, we’re going to be here all day.”

Peter looked like he was in crisis about his childhood hero being more of the villain type, but nonetheless he replied, “no, keep going.”

Felicia took a breath and looked at the papers to see where she needed to go with this little information session. She also thought it best to give Pete another second to collect the pieces of his mind that were blown off from her Tony presentation.

“Let’s see Tony Stark still works in weapons and product development at SI, but he gave the position of CEO to his girlfriend, Pepper Potts. She’s… actually… she’s really good from what I can find. She’s implemented green energy projects globally, increased humanitarian efforts, and brought up the company’s profits since she took over in 2009. The reason I bring her up is because her and Tony live in Stark Towers. My research claims the other primary Avengers live there, with the others visiting frequently. It’s a pretty perfect cover. Stark Tower is filled with actual workers and projects, so no one pays attention to who’s living there.

“Now let’s move on to co-captain, Steve Rogers, otherwise know as Captain America. Born and raised in Brooklyn. He joined the military but left after mysterious circumstances. I think this is when he was recruited to join the Avengers. I’ll explain why in a bit. Umm… he is a remarkable soldier, excellent fighter, and the most reasonable of the team.

“His other half, James Barnes, isn’t as friendly to encounter. Those two have been friends since birth and became more than friends once the Avengers were more established. James joined the military six months before Steve. Trained as a sharp-shooter and his kill count is off the charts. He left the military almost a year before Steve did. The Winter Soldier was born shortly after. James used his fighting skills and marksmanship to become one of the top mercenaries in the world. Spent some time in Russia, doing who knows what, and came back to join the Avengers in 2014. This guy is ruthless. He will kill you if he thinks you’re a threat to his team. I also think he’s the reason Steve left the military. When the Avengers were first forming, Barnes was asked about as a recruitment, but I think Barnes led them to Steve as an alternative.

“Next up, Natasha Romanov. She’s been known as the Black Widow since before the Avengers formed. She’s a skilled assassin, and an even better spy. Began working for the KGB, until she was recruited as a spy for SHIELD by Clint Barton, aka, Hawkeye. I couldn’t find much on either of them except for Hawkeye shoots arrows and never misses, they both worked for SHIELD, allegedly, and they joined the Avengers together. Oh! I also got some intel that Romanov worked with Tony Stark in 2009. Something to do with Hammer Tech. They parted ways until the Avengers formed. Have I lost you with anything? We’re about halfway through.”

“No, I think I’ve got it. Is there anyone who might be at the tower during the heist. I mean, if Barnes was there the night you first watched the place, would anyone else be showing up?” Peter asked her. His head tilted as he studied the pages on each Avenger.

Felicia flipped through her stack of papers until she found the two members she was looking for. “I don’t think we’ll have to worry about another Avenger showing up. Honestly, none have been around the place since I saw Barnes.” She replied. Handing Peter the two profiles she continued, “but I understand your concern about surprise Avengers at the tower. There are rumors of contacts in Europe, I think they’re brothers, and a team on the west coast around San Francisco. Other than them, the two most likely to be there are James “Rhodey” Rhodes, codename: War Machine, and Sam Wilson, codename: Falcon. Both are ex-military, specifically they’re both pilots. Rhodey is Stark’s best friend and deals with business all over. He also works for SI. Wilson met Rogers and was recruited to the Avengers. He’s one of their best pilots and handles most of their import/export.”

“The Hulk is our next man on the main team. His real name is Dr. Bruce Banner. Got the nickname because of his temper. He doesn’t have much to do with the fighting or business ends, but he is their best scientist after Stark. His focus is on gamma radiation. I think you’ve read some of his work. But he got brought in by Stark to work at SI and occasionally help him in the R & D portion of the mafia. I don’t know much about what he does, but he’s not likely to kill us, so who cares.

“In terms of killing us, we should be worried about the twins. They came to the US from Sokovia after the Avengers asked them to join. I don’t know where they got their training from, but their file says they were part of some revolutionary group. Though most revolutionary groups I know aren’t that good. My best guess is there was an unknown third party involved in their training, which makes them dangerous for us.”

Felicia takes another look at the files on the twins. _I hate not knowing about my enemy. If these guys are as dangerous as I think, then we’d be better off running into Stark._ She’s so lost in her own thought regarding the twins, that she forgets she was supposed to be debriefing Peter until he clears his throat, getting her attention.

“And who are they exactly?” Peter interrupts her thoughts. He’s looking into her eyes to make sure she’s still with him and not lost in her own head.

“What?” She said. “Oh, right. I forgot that part.”

“Thing 1 is Pietro Maximoff, who the team calls Quicksilver. It’s equal parts because of his hair and because of how fast he is. Seriously, this guy is a blur when fighting. Also, he’s one of the best getaway car drivers out there. I once thought about calling him when I couldn’t figure out the getaway of a bank robbery I did a while before I knew you.

“Thing 2 is his sister, Wanda Maximoff, she’s known around New York as the Scarlett Witch. Decent fighter, promising spy, and excellent interrogator. Rumor has it she doesn’t need to torture information out of people. One guy I talked to said it’s like she can read people’s minds with how easily she gets information out of them. Even though she isn’t known for her fighting, she’s still good. Plus, this information was from before the joined the Avengers. I’m positive they’ve gotten a bunch of training from the team, especially Barton, Romanov, and Barnes.”

“Why do they have you so worried?” Peter asked. “I’m way more scared about the three assassins and the billionaire we’ll be pissing off.”

Felicia took a second before she answered. “The others, I can piece their lives together. They’ve been around long enough so people are familiar enough with their skills to paint me a picture. The twins are young, which means they have less experience, but they’ve got the best trainers. There is a chance they’ll be more trigger happy. If this goes south, I worry the Avengers will send them. Now if it was Barnes and Rogers, they would only be coming after me because I was the one who robbed them. You’d be some idiot lackey they don’t have time for. The twins won’t know that. I don’t want them coming after you because of me. I don’t-“

She doesn’t get to finish her sentence before Peter cuts her off with a hug. It takes her by surprise before she slowly wraps her arms around him and nuzzles her face into his shoulder. Felicia didn’t realize she was crying until he gently shushed her as he stroked her blonde hair.

“Don’t worry. You’ve planned this out perfectly. I’ll be fine and so will you.” He spoke softly into her ear.

Eventually, she let go of Peter and wiped at her eyes to get rid of the stray tears. She knows she needs to go through the plan again, but she doesn’t have the energy to anymore.

Sensing this Peter said, “I already know the plan by heart. You did make me memorize it. So, would you like me to give you a brief run through and then we can get some sleep for tomorrow?”

“Sure Spider.”

“I’m gonna let that slide, Alley Cat. Alright it’s nighttime and I’m on the roof of the building next door. I hack into the system, set the cameras on loop, and disable any motion sensors you might come across. Then, I give you the all clear and you shimmy into the vents where you will ninja drop into the conference room, take the painting, and be out before anyone knows it’s gone. Once you’re out, I’ll set their systems back to normal like we were never there.”

“You got it.” She smiled at how proud he looked.

Peter stood up and stretched. Muscles stiff from being on the couch. He waved a hand towards Felicia, silently beaconing her to follow him to bed. She looked at her data one last time. She’ll have to burn this stuff once the job is done. The last thing they needed was someone finding it. Shaking her head, she too stood up and followed Peter to bed.

Tomorrow would be a long day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi you guys!! Thank you so much for reading this chapter!  
> Anyways, I would have updated sooner, but I spent a lot longer than I originally planned trying to figure out whether or not the Avengers, Peter, and Felicia should have powers. In the end, I decided to stick with my original idea of having a no powers au. Also, for all of you patiently waiting for the Avenger's to make an appearance, I promise you the wait will not be much longer. Who knows, we might even run into one in the next chapter.  
> Side note: for all of you who thought of Clint when I mentioned Felicia climbing through vents, I love you right now.


	4. The Heist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We've finally made it to the heist, you guys!!! I won't give anything away about this chapter, but I can say that everything is about to change for our heroes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings for the chapter:  
> \- mentions of violence (not super graphic) that will explore Peter and Felicia's pasts a little bit  
> \- swearing (its a mafia fic, so swearing was going to increase)  
> \- There is a potential Spider-Man Far From Home suit spoiler in this chapter (trust me, it is only a spoiler if you have avoided every trailer, poster, and tv spot for this movie)  
> \- Read end notes (if the not a spoiler, but I'm warning you anyways, isn't a problem) to find out which suits I used for this fic

_“Spider! I told you to run!!” Felicia screamed at Peter. The sound of the security guards was getting closer as her feet pounded across the rooftop._

_“And I told you I wasn’t leaving you behind.” Peter had the audacity to sound calm. She honestly wanted to punch him, but she knew calm Spider-Man meant terrified Peter Parker._

_She reached him just in time for the door to be broken down and for the security guards to come streaming out like angry wasps._

_“Besides,” he said, pulling her close to his side. “You looked like you needed a getaway.”_

_“Spider, what are you talking about?” Felicia’s voice grew wary and she was led closer to the edge of the roof by Peter._

_“Call it a leap of faith.” The teasing tone evident in his voice. “Don’t worry, cats always land on their feet._

_She didn’t get a chance to respond because Peter leapt off the roof with her in his arms._

**_Five hours earlier…_ **

The sun was setting in New York City as Peter and Felicia made their way across Brooklyn. They had taken the subway over from Queens an hour earlier so they had time to get food beforehand because, according to Peter, you couldn’t perform a heist on an empty stomach. Due to that logic, they now had burgers and milkshakes.

“Why are these bags so heavy?” Peter whined.

Laughing, Felicia shoved his shoulder with her own. Careful not to spill her chocolate milkshake while doing so. “Quit your whining, Parker. We’re almost there.”

She subtly adjusted the backpack when Peter wasn’t looking. He wasn’t wrong, these backpacks are heavy. They’re both stuffed with all the gear for tonight’s heist. A duffel bag would have been better, but that would have drawn way more attention than two teens with backpacks. Unfortunately. 

* * *

 

“What is this building anyways?” Peter asked as he set up his computer. The wind rustling his brown curls.

“This place?” Felicia said. “It’s a law firm. Great for us because the chance of someone bothering us up here is slim to none.”

The pale grey roof had high enough walls on the side where anyone sitting down wouldn’t be seen. Plus, it was taller than the Avenger’s building, which meant the Cat had the element of surprise and the Spider could keep all eight eyes on her.

It was silent after that. The sun had set about an hour ago and they were now waiting patiently for 1:30 AM to roll around so the heist could begin. Peter fiddled with his computers. Doing his best to quietly infiltrate the buildings security so he could be ready when the Cat needed him to be. The black suit he was wearing worked well to hide his face and the goggles were outfitted with a night vision feature, courtesy of Felicia, though they both know it was the Black Cat who relieved it from the previous owners.

Covered in body armor, Felicia assured him it was the best stuff on the market. It must be if she’s using it on her suit. Even though it can stop a knife and take the blow from a bullet, Peter isn’t sure he’ll be okay should either event occur tonight. The only disadvantage to the suit is the gloves. His palms are covered, but his fingertips are bare, which makes it easier for him to work with the tech, but he also can’t touch anything they aren’t taking with them for fear of leaving fingerprints.

Peter thought it was a bit excessive, but Felicia swore that if anyone were to comb through a crime with such a fine-tooth comb for even a portion of a fingerprint, it would be the Avengers. He still wondered if she meant that, or if she was looking for another reason for him to stay as far away from the heist as possible.

Midnight rolled by and they both had binoculars watching the building below them. Felicia was checking each floor to determine a body count for the night, while Peter was tasked with watching the roads for any signs of the Avengers showing up. As Peter watched each car roll by on the street below, his mind wandered back to his date with MJ.

What she said still bothered him for some reason. Why would this heist be personal for Cat? She works alone ninety percent of the time. This is an ego trip for her, and he’s become an unwilling enabler. Right?

He must be right. The only person she does heists with is him and he’s only glorified tech support when she can’t steal the thing and watch camera feeds at the same time. Even then, she’s reluctant to use him, and is adamant about not using someone she doesn’t know. The only other entity involved in her heists is her fence. Her _fence._

Peter feels like an idiot for not realizing it sooner. She doesn’t care about, or trust, Frank, but Nitro was like a mentor for her. His prison sentence must have hit her as hard as losing Uncle Ben hit him.

Without meaning to he blurted out, “Nitro.”

The reaction is instantaneous. Felicia freezes with the binoculars still hiding her eyes, and her shoulders visibly tense at hearing the name aloud for the first time in ages.

“What about him?” Her voice is tense.

“When it happened, you only told me he pissed off the wrong people and they sent him to jail for it. Those people were the Avengers, weren’t they?”

“Yes.”

“Then why didn’t you tell me?” Peter tried very hard not to yell. “Is that what this is? Some sort of revenge mission for you. What, are you going to tell Nitro about it through a coded letter you send to his jail cell?”

“Nitro isn’t in jail.” She said quietly. Head bowed.

“Of course he’s in jail, where else would he be?” It hits him like a ton of bricks. This was more like Uncle Ben than he thought.

“You were the one who thought Nitro was in jail. I just never corrected you,” she began. “Nitro put together a crew to steal a weapons cache stolen from some gang. I was considered for the job, but Nitro thought I worked better alone so he gave me a job robbing a jewelry store in Brooklyn Heights. I don’t know much about what went wrong, but I did learn the Avengers were the gang he stole from. I thought he was crazy for messing with them, so I went down to ask him about it and to give him the jewels since he didn’t contact me about when to drop them off. That should have been my first clue something was wrong. He never forgot to tell his thieves about drop times for anything they stole. When I got to his shop, the door was busted in. That’s when I knew something went wrong.” Her voice cracked, but Peter tactfully ignored it. “The shop was a mess and Nitro’s office door was left open, so I walked in to see if he’d gone on the run. When I got in there, the room was trashed, and Nitro was on the floor with a bullet hole through his skull.”

Felicia stayed silent for a solid five minutes. Peter dared not break it for as long as he could. Only offering her his shoulder to lean on and pretended not to notice her wiping away the few tears which slipped past her eye’s hardened defenses.

“I’m so sorry, Felicia.” What else was there to say? Peter felt like the rug had been yanked right out from under him.

“It’s personal for me, but, at the same time, it’s not.” She said. “I want to hurt them in some way for what they did, but I would have taken this job if Nitro was killed by another gang. I’m sick of losing my money to Frank with every job. This is my out from him mostly. Revenge isn’t the focus.”

“I don’t care if revenge isn’t the focus.” Peter sounded far more exasperated than he meant to. “These guys murdered someone you cared about. I deserved to know about this.”

“It doesn’t matter.” Felicia said. She moved her binoculars over her eyes again and continued to search the levels. A clear indication that their conversation was over. Peter couldn’t help but feel slightly betrayed by Felicia. She kept something this important from him. He thought they were at a point where they would tell each other everything, but clearly, she still wanted to keep some of the Cat’s secrets from him.

“If you see one of the Avengers, promise me you won’t go after them.” He said finally.

“I’m no killer, Peter. Besides, I don’t know who shot him. It could have been Stark, a lackey, or a random gun for hire. Hell, it could have been Mr. Delmar’s cat who pulled the trigger for all I know about his murder.” She refused to look Peter in the eye.

He felt guilty for even suggesting she was, but he had to. “You know how hard it was for me when Uncle Ben was killed. I had a vendetta against the man who shot him for months. A part of me wanted to put him in jail, but there was a smaller, darker, part of me that wanted to kill him myself for what he’d done. I never found him, but I don’t like to think about what would have happened if I had.” He paused for a moment. “I know what a loss like that does to a person. You think you have it under control until you don’t. I don’t want to see you get hurt. The Avengers are dangerous and if you kill one of them, you’ll be running for the rest of your life.”

“You know, Spider, if you keep talking like that, people might actually think you care.” A smirk played across her lips, but he heard the gratitude underlying the words. The thank you for understanding which she would never dare say aloud.

Peter was still upset about the lie, but he felt somewhat better knowing she wasn’t planning on going after the Avengers. At least not tonight. He silently prayed that they wouldn’t run into any Avengers tonight.

* * *

 

“Spider, you ready to go?” Felicia asked as she stretched in preparation for her grand entrance. The cylindrical case was held loosely in her hands. It wouldn’t be too difficult to work with, but she needed to be a bit more careful with entry than normal. The last few art thefts she’s done have been in apartments or museums. Tonight, will be the first time in a while that she’s actually had to drag herself through air ducts with one of these. This painting better be worth the cumbersome container.

“Almost. I just need one more second. There.” He said. “Okay, so I set a loop for the security cameras and I’ve disabled the motion sensors on the roof. I couldn’t find any security for the ventilation systems, so you should be good to go there.”

“Thanks Spider.” She smiled at her favorite tech genius. Taking a few steps back, she was about to make her move when Peter spoke up again.

“Are you sure there isn’t another way in?” Peter winced as he looked down at the street below and then at the distance between the two buildings. “Your really good with that grappling hook. We could launch a line across for you.”

Felicia walked up to him and placed a fond hand on his shoulder. “A grappling hook would leave a mark and make too much noise for this job’s level of carefulness required. Plus, it’s useless to get me back here. This building is taller, so I would have another issue.”

When she saw his worried expression, she gave his shoulder a quick squeeze and said, “it’s really not that far between buildings.”

Before Peter could voice any more of his concerns, Felicia got into position and made a run for the edge of the building. With one graceful leap, she was free falling between buildings.

These were the moments when she truly felt like the Black Cat. Utterly fearless and unstoppable. A seasoned thief who could rob any mark like it was a game only she knew how to win.

She hit the roof of the Avengers’ building with a roll. Careful not to let one part of her body hit too hard. Hands reached for the case to find it fully intact with barely a scratch on its black paint. Dusting herself off, she listened for the sound of guards or alarms coming to life. Ears strained for the slightest of sound, but there was nothing to be heard.

The Cat smiled. Spider’s hacking had worked wonders.

Gravel on the roof crunching lightly beneath her feet, she made her way over to the ventilation shaft. The little lock picking case was forever her friend, but she ignored the little tools in favor of the screwdrivers she kept in the cases secondary compartment. The screws were easy enough to loosen and soon she was lowering herself down into the air shaft.

For a seasoned thief, ductwork was like a second home mixed with a playground. You could get anywhere if you knew what you were doing and where you were going. Honestly, the straight drops of the air shafts were the most terrifying part, but the Cat had long ago mastered the subtle art of shifting her body weight and shimming down floor by floor until her desired location was reached.

 _Let’s see. Three, no four, floors down from the roof._ She thought.

A minute later had the Cat crawling through the ductwork of the proper floor. The grates were far enough apart that she could hide between them with a practiced ease each time the steady patrol of guards made their way below her.

Two lefts and a right later, and she was looking down upon the mahogany conference table she had glimpsed when Barnes visited here during her stakeout. _Good times._ Her brain’s sarcasm at full force.

Now comes the tricky part. Peter’s security scans showed no cameras, motion sensors, or secret laser grids, probably so no footage or digital trace could be left of their super-secret mafia meetings. But it didn’t mean a random guard wouldn’t wander in here on a whim. She had to move fast.

The grate was attached to the vent like a little door in the surprisingly spacious ductwork. _For such a high security building, it’s weird that they’d have vents big enough to fit a grown man._ She was grateful for this oversight.

She soundlessly dropped onto the table. As she made her way over to the painting, she decided to see what it was she was hired to steel. It was disappointing to say the least. Sitting in a gold frame wasn’t the lost work of a master painter she was expecting, but instead a simple acrylic painting of an old pirate ship in a storm.

The lackluster painting only confirmed her suspicions that this was more of a capture the flag game with another gang. Classic we can take what’s yours and you can’t do anything about it. Ha. Ha. Ha. _A snatch and grab for the ages, my ass. You think you’re getting a Rembrandt and instead they give you office space “art.” Where did the respect for professional thieves go? Honestly._

She failed to mask her disappointment at being the thief in a petty squabble between gangs by taking her switchblade knife and getting to work on the painting. Cutting it was easy, the hard part was not slicing into the picture itself by mistake. Not like it would be a great loss to the art world.

Idly, she put her knife between the painting and the gold frame. Careful to pry the two apart from each other as she methodically worked her way around. Pry, pry, cut. Pry, pry, cut.

In what felt like ages, but what was at most two minutes, Felicia finally freed the painting from its wooden stronghold. She rolled the canvas and loaded it into the black container. With that out of the way, it was time for the Cat to be going.

As she turned away, something black caught her eye inside the frame. She swore. It must be some security feature they didn’t pick up on. Strange, there isn’t a light on it or any wiring to suggest an alarm. In fact, it looks like its just a standard box.

Picking it up, she heard something small move inside of it. However, lifting the lid revealed nothing more than a silver USB. Without thinking, she pocketed the item. Maybe it had some trade secrets she could sell on the black market later.

Soon, she was back in the ducts and crawling towards the air shaft that would take her to the ceiling. It wasn’t until she was a little over halfway up the air shaft that she heard Peter’s voice sounding off.   

“Black Cat, do you copy? Black Cat?” The comm crackled to life in her ear.

“Black Cat come in” Peter’s voice continued.

Raising a hand to her ear Felicia said, “Black Cat here. What’s the situation, Spider?”

Peter’s reply was instant. “You need to run. NOW!”

“What-” She didn’t get a chance to finish. She heard the sound of boots running through the halls a second before the alarms flared to life.

In that moment, the Black Cat’s only thought was run.

And run she did. Quicker than she’s ever climbed in her life she was up and out of the vents in seconds. Normally, she would have taken the time to put the vent back in place and brush away any footprints left behind. Well normally, she didn’t have guards coming after her with guns blazing.

A crash sounded behind her. She whipped around to find Peter rolling onto the roof like she did. Two backpacks slung onto his shoulders. She taught him well. If it wasn’t such a dire situation, she would have hugged him. There’ll be time for that later. She hoped.

The staccato trill of gun fire sounded off below them. The security guards were of the shoot first, ask questions later, variety. Not good. Even worse, Peter had to face them with her.

“Spider! I told you to run!!” Felicia screamed at Peter. The sound of the security guards was getting closer as her feet pounded across the rooftop.

“And I told you I wasn’t leaving you behind.” Peter had the audacity to sound calm. She honestly wanted to punch him, but she knew calm Spider-Man meant terrified Peter Parker.

She reached him just in time for the door to be broken down and for the security guards to come streaming out like angry wasps.

“Besides,” he said, pulling her close to his side. “You looked like you needed a getaway.”

“Spider, what are you talking about?” Felicia’s voice grew wary and she was led closer to the edge of the roof by Peter.

“Call it a leap of faith.” The teasing tone evident in his voice. “Don’t worry, cats always land on their feet.

She didn’t get a chance to respond because Peter leapt off the roof with her in his arms.

* * *

 

What the two teens didn’t know, couldn’t have known, not really, was that hours later the scene of their crime would be investigated by one powerful individual.

Tony Stark strode out of the elevator, confident as ever, and into the room in his tailored Tom Ford Suit. Black shoes reflecting the lights of the room in such a way to make him look like he stepped out from a magazine shoot to be here today. No one would have guessed that it was barely dawn or that he had been in bed with Pepper not even an hour earlier.  

He ignored the vent and broken windows, stepped over the bullets so haphazardly fired into his conference room, and went straight for the only thing that mattered in this damn building. The painting. Well, not the painting per say, but what lied behind it.

He almost screamed when he finally saw it. The painting had been cut free from the frame. Clearly with great care taken to preserve its value. The ironic part was it had none compared to what it hid.

A small part of Tony had hoped the thief left the black box alone when they stole the painting. Thinking it was a sort of crude security device which was best to leave be, but as luck would have it, they took it. The one thing Tony Stark couldn’t afford to replace was now gone.

“Everyone out. Now!” He yelled to the workers still milling about. One of the janitors dropped the broom he was holding in favor of getting out of Tony’s soon to be war path.

Sitting down on the leather chair at the head of the mahogany conference table, Tony reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small burner phone. Searching the contacts, he pressed call once he found the name he was looking for. Tony tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for the dial tone to be replaced with a voice.

Seconds before the call was sure to go to voicemail, a bleary voice answered.

“Hello?”

“It’s Stark.” Tony said in favor of a proper greeting. “Didn’t take you for a sleeping in kind of guy, Rogers. Aren’t you usually running before dawn, or has old age finally gotten to you?”

“I wasn’t . . . I mean I’m not-” Steve was about to say more, but was interrupted by the sound of one James Barnes asking, “who is it?”

Despite the tense situation, Tony laughs as he hears Steve scramble to cover the phone before more of what Bucky says can be heard. Though he swears he hears the muttered words of “come back to bed” before the sound of a door opening and closing cuts Bucky off completely.

Tony was still laughing when Cap said, “shut it, Tones.”

“Fine. I would ask how you are, but it’s obviously a lot better than me. What? Too loud to hear the phone. I was wondering how I managed to beat you both here.”

“What are you talking about?” Steve said. His avoidance of Tony’s comments about a certain activity became all the more amusing to him. Though, his remembrance of the reason for his call drained the humor right out of him.

“The box was stolen last night. Security was cut for this section of the building when the heist took place, so we didn’t get a good look at either of them.”

“Them?” Steve asked.

“Yeah, them.” Tony replied. “The team that went after them said there were two of them on the roof. They didn’t get a good look at either of them, but they did say the two of them repelled off the side of the building using some high strength bungee cord.”

“And you buy that?”

“I buy the jumped off the roof part, but no rope was left behind and there’s no marks in the brick to suggest a grappling hook. No, this is some custom shit we’re dealing with.”

Steve sighed before he said, “alright, me and Buck will be there in ten.”

“Don’t bother. I’ve already covered the place and there’s nothing left to find that matters. Assemble the Avengers and meet me at the tower’s war room. We’ve got to catch a thief.”

Tony hung up the phone before Steve could reply. He sent a quick text to Happy and told him to bring the car around. It was time to remind the criminal world who ran the show around here.    

Oh, they were going to pay.   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!!! Thank you all so much for reading this fic. I have been having the best time writing it. Also, thank you for the sweet comments and kudos. You're the best!  
> I am so excited for Spider-Man Far From Home. Cannot believe it is less than a month away. Anyways, onto the suits.  
> For the Black Cat, her suit is the one she wears in Spider-Man PS4 because I love how the creative team designed it. While Peter's suit is based entirely off of the Spider-Man Noir themed suit he's been shown in for Far From Home. I felt both of these suits fit the theme of this fic very well. Also, I couldn't write a bright red and blue suit as covert no matter how hard I tried.  
> Side Note: I've finally confirmed STUCKY for this fic!!! Yay!! WOOOOOO! AND THE SHIPPERS GO WILD!!!!  
> I would have tagged them as a couple in the first chapter, but I wasn't sure back then when they were going to appear or if I would even pair them, so I figured I should leave it as a surprise for when it officially happened.  
> Wow, this turned out long. Anyways, have a wonderful rest of your day and I will see you all next chapter.


	5. The Fallout

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Actions have consequences.

“What was that?!” Felicia meant to yell at Peter, but she was already winded, so it came off as more of a disgruntled wheeze.

They had been running through New York for the last hour to lose any pursuers from that shit show of a heist. Weaving in and out of early morning streets. They changed into their civilian clothes in a back alley, which they checked over twice for any security cameras or potential traffic cameras that might get a shot of them. Now, it was a little past sunrise and they were making their way to a safe house Felicia had acquired ages ago should something like this happen.

The only thing she never expected was for that something to be this big.

“What was what?” Peter asked her back. The strain in his voice wasn’t as noticeable as Felicia’s. Granted, he is more committed to fitness than she ever will be.

“All of it!” She yelled incredulously. A wave of her arms around her head emphasizing her point. “The alarms, you on the roof, the jump of doom.”

“Oh, yeah. That.” Peter scratched the back of his head with his hand. Eyes looking at the shop windows whose workers were busy inside getting ready to open for the day.

“The jump thing. Its complicated.” Peter tried lamely.

Felicia looked him dead in the eyes as she said, “I shot at the last person to feed me a line like that. So, I’m going to tell you what I told them. Uncomplicate it.”

It’s not like their escape wasn’t safe, and she’s positive it will be memorable in the thieving community for years to come. Her problem comes from understanding what even happened.

One moment Peter was pulling her close to him and making lame cat jokes, while angry security guards came after them. The next, Peter was throwing the two of them off the roof like beads at a Mardi Gras parade. If it wasn’t for the guys with guns, she would have screamed her head off on the way down. But as they fell towards the Brooklyn alley below them, a thwip sound was made and soon they were being caught by an impossibly strong web like string that slowed their descent and lowered them safely toward the ground.

Once their boots hit the ground, they ran for it. The only thing which kept them from being shot at then, or on the way down, was the guards surprise at having their targets chuck themselves off a roof without a rope or parachute visible.

“I like to call them web shooters, patent pending,” Peter began. He punctuated his statement with an awkward chuckle. Hand scratching behind his ear as they attempted to disappear into each new crowd. “I developed them a while ago. When Spider-Man was still an idea in my head. They were meant to be used in quick getaways, or for getting around discreetly, like the climbing claws in your gloves and boots.”

“Climbing claws?” She scoffed. They were much cooler than that. “I’ll have you know, Parker, I outfitted these boots and gloves with miniature steel daggers that allow me to scale buildings with minimal difficulty.”

“In other words,” A smile tugged on Peter’s lips. “Climbing claws.”

She paused. “Yes, climbing claws.”

What she left out was the minimal difficulty would be present in her gear if she could only get the things to a point where they’re reliable enough to work when she uses them. The thought of them sends a pain into her back at the last dumpster she fell on top of.  

The crowds off to work are thinning out as they enter the outskirts of the city. Past the condos and skyscrapers and into the less glamorous areas. She spots a green street sign down the way, which tips her off to where they are.

“Hold on.” A hand reaches for Peter’s shoulder. Stopping him in his tracks. He looks at her and then looks around them, not seeing anything particularly amiss.

“What’s wrong?” He asked.

Felicia doesn’t reply initially. Her mind figuring out the safest route to their current hideout.

“This route has been compromised.” She said finally. Pointing past the green street sign to the image of the crocodile standing on his haunches, dressed in a top hat, tap shoes, and a cane in his hand. “That shop sends messages out for the criminal underground. When it’s safe, there’s a black cat in the window with glowing green eyes. They have a sense of humor that way. The crocodile means something hasn’t happened, but it’s going to happen soon. You usually see this up when gangs are about to go to war. If it’s up, it means there’s more trouble than we can afford to handle right now.”

Hand clasping Peter’s forearm, Felicia drags him down a side street. “If we cut through here, we can circle around this area and still get to where we need to go.”

“But,” Peter started, but Felicia cuts him off.

“Not right now.” She shushed him. “Look, when these things have gone down in the past, criminal organizations have sent spies here to sniff out what the trouble is before it begins. I don’t know when the signs were replaced, so for all we know, those spies could already be here. Which means, if we want to lay low, we can’t talk about where we’re going or what we’re doing. No names either. Names are like diamonds in this industry. Just follow me and keep your head down.”

Felicia shifted her eyes. Searching the dark corners, shop windows, and back alleys for any familiar faces. She wasn’t concerned about these criminals recognizing her, but she was concerned of an Avenger or two showing up here to gather information or cause trouble. With them, it’d probably end up being a little bit of both.

* * *

The war room in Avengers Tower was bustling. Lackeys were scrambling to grab coffee, breakfast, information, and leads for the team. Bucky watched them with a casual gaze looking bored as ever.

Except he was far from bored. Some punks thought they could steal from him, _him_ , and get away with it? Ridiculous.

Stark looked ready to murder someone as he paced the room like a caged tiger. While Stevie sat at the conference table. Chin resting lightly on his fist. He looked the picture of calm to anyone around. Bucky knew he was doing it to calm the rest of the Avengers and to at least lower Tony’s rage. Though, Bucky thought Stark and he were both a long way past calm down and were heading straight for an explosion.

“You know Stark,” he began. A smirk curling onto his lips. “If you keep pacing like that, we’re going to have to repair the floors from where you wore them through.”

Tony’s steel gaze locked onto him. “Shut it, Barnes. We’ve got problems now and last I checked, you and your golden boy over there were charged with looking after our Brooklyn office.” Tony jabs a finger at Rogers and Bucky’s blood boils.

“Listen here, you arrogant fuck, I was guarding the place, but what I don’t appreciate is a painting holding something that important to the team and not being informed of it.”

Tony lets out a humorless laugh. Hands on the conference table, he leans forward to give Barnes a piece of his mind. Bucky sees all of this and thinks, _bring it on, rich boy._

Before either of them could begin a punching match, Steve stood from the table and pushed Tony away, while sending Bucky a look promising he would greatly regret getting up from his chair, which he was in the process of leaving. Effectively creating a human barrier between the two men. Much to their mutual chagrin.

“Alright,” Steve said as he put his hands up incase either tried to show past him and jump the table to their target, “we all screwed up here in some way, but that’s in the past. What matters now if figuring out what our next move is.”

Bucky’s back falls into the chair once more and Tony sits down with a huff. The two continue to glare at each other, but no murders will be occurring today. At least for now.

The once frozen room goes back to normal. Idle chatter resumes and the minions continue their quests for documents and coffee. Steve give Tony and Bucky one last look before paging in the rest of the team.

In seconds, the team walks in and files to their respective seats. Bucky realized in an instant that Steve knew Tony and him would start a fight, so he kept the team waiting in the lounge until they had cooled off a little. With the glare Rhodey sends him as he sits down next to Tony, Bucky knows they could also hear their almost fight. Fan-fucking-tastic.

With a sigh, Tony begins the meeting. “Remember that thing I hid in the painting? Well, it’s gone now. No one’s to blame really. Security leaves more to be desired, but what are you going to do? It’s _so hard_ to find good help these days.”

He said that last bit staring right at Bucky. In turn, Bucky slammed his natural hand onto the table and said, “oh that’s it!” He tried to stand up only to be pushed down again by a hand on his shoulder. Said hand was attached to Steve Rogers, but it wouldn’t be much longer if he didn’t let the fuck go of him right now.

Steve must have sensed this because he carefully removed his hand and shot a look to Tony. “Tony, do you have any way to track it?”

“Trackers couldn’t be placed inside it, so no.” He replied. “The only way I can get a read on its location is if it’s being used. Then, Jarvis can trace it for us in a matter of minutes without alerting anyone who has a lower understanding of tech than me, which is everyone.”

“Great. Now, any idea who could have done this?”

At this, Natasha joins the conversation. “In terms of the thieves who stole it, we have of few leads, but nothing has been confirmed. We can stir up some more leads there. As for buyers, I would say the usual suspects.”

“If it hasn’t been used, then that means the thieves still have it, so this is our best chance of getting back.” Clint added.

“Right,” Natasha said, “and, if they’re using a fence, it means the fence hasn’t made the trade yet. Once it reaches the buyer’s hands, we can still get it, but it will more difficult.”

Bruce rubbed a hand over his tired face. “We should have destroyed the thing when we still had it.”

“Hey!” Tony yelled. “I seem to remember you helping me build it.”

“I wish I didn’t, Tony.”

Bucky glanced around the room. Pietro and Wanda were seated in the corner awaiting orders, Clint and Natasha were working through their list of suspects, Steve was trying to maintain some semblance of order, and Tony looked ready to defend his invention until he was blue in the face. That man is too proud of his inventions.

_He still gloats about how technologically advanced my arm is and he created it years ago,_ Bucky thought.

So, Bucky shot Steve a look and Steve took read the sign to call order. “Alright, does anyone have an idea on how to stir up more information on our thieves?”

“How about I take the wonder twins and anyone else who wants to come tonight on a tour of New York’s crime world. Ya know, the docks, Hell’s Kitchen, gang hideouts. We can bash a few skulls and ask about any thefts they’ve heard about. Fences love to brag about big scores.” The twins perked up at Bucky’s proposal. They’ve been benched for awhile since Pietro got shot, so this will be their first mission in months.

Tony’s smile is feral. “Finally, the Manchurian Candidate says something I can agree with. You can go on the mission, just do me one favor.”

“What’s that?”

The glint in Tony’s eyes is deadly. “Set New York on fire while you’re out. I want those bastards that robbed us to know we’re coming.”

“With pleasure.” Bucky snarled.  

* * *

 

“Nice place you’ve got here.” Peter’s gaze swept across the storage unit. A small television that was wire tapped into the building’s security feed sat in the corner, while a light blue sofa bed was against the wall next to them. A battered dresser was there too, but, as Peter began opening drawers, he found his clothes, Felicia’s clothes, fake documentation, international currency, weapons, and an assortment of high-end jewelry.

“Thanks. I got it after everything that happened with Nitro. It has everything we need to skip town or hide away in a moment’s notice. I’ve bribed the owners to ignore my set-up here, so we should be good.”

Peter plopped down onto the sofa and looked expectantly at the backpack Felicia still wore.

“So, can I see the art we jumped off a roof for?” The teasing smile was impossible to ignore.

“First, I’m going to get you back for chucking me off a roof. Second, the art is garbage. I think it was hiding something better.” She pulled out the black box from her bag. It was nothing special, but she flipped open the latch to reveal a USB drive sitting inside it.

“Okay, if they wanted you to steal the box, then why wouldn’t they say so?” Peter asked.

Felicia shrugged. “Maybe they do want the art. It could be a mafia style capture the flag situation. Who cares? This drive could be filled with information on the Avengers which I can sell on the black market. It could give us a lot of extra cash.”

Uncertainty laced through Peter’s voice as he said, “are you sure about this? I mean, stealing a painting is one thing, but this could be verging into recklessness and revenge territory.”

“It’ll be fine, Spider. I won’t do anything stupid, but we will have to hide out here until nightfall. Frank wants me to drop the painting off so he can make the trade with the buyer ASAP.”

“Are you going to bring the drive?”

Felicia thought it over for a moment. “I guess.” She shrugged. “If there’s time, I can offer it to him tonight, but, if not, I can just call for a meeting. Honestly, I haven’t figured out where I’m going to sell this. Do you think we could plug this into a computer and find out what’s on it?”

“Sure. If it’s encrypted, I can probably break through to its data files. Ned can always help us out if we need it.” Peter thought about his next words for a minute. “Hey, can I come to the drop with you? This theft was pretty dangerous, and I don’t want you to not have any help in case there’s trouble.”

Felicia smiled. “You’re sweet, but I don’t want you at the meet. I have taken great pains to keep your name out of my jobs, making sure Frank and Nitro both thought I was just hiring whatever hacker was available for the night I needed them.” She must have saw the disappointment cross his face because she continued. “How about I set you up away from the warehouse with my binoculars and the comms so you can watch my six and tell me if anyone starts lurking around the building while I’m there?”

“Fine, but if I tell you to run, then you have to get out of there.”

On any other day, he would have thought it a bit much, but he held out his hand for her to shake on their deal for tonight. He needed to know she would get out of there. Especially with the Avengers on the hunt for a thief.

Felicia returned the handshake. “Deal.”

She pointed to a deck of cards on top of the dresser. “You up for a game? We’ve got awhile.” The smile on her face was contagious. So, they sat on the sofa with the full intention of playing card games until nightfall.

* * *

 

“Spider, I’m on the roof. How’s everything from your end?”

The docks are quiet with only the distant sound of a foghorn breaking the silence. Felicia is in full gear as the Black Cat with the painting slung over her back. The USB drive is hidden in her pocket. Tucked away in case she needs to get out of here quick.

“Cat? I’m here. I think there’s a car pulling up to the building. Black SUV, coming up on your left.” Felicia froze. The buyer wasn’t supposed to be here when she was giving Frank the painting. She gave him explicit instructions that she never meet the buyers to protect her identity.

Sure enough, a black SUV pulled up to the warehouse and a team of three men and one woman stepped out. All of them wore suits, but each kept a hand close to their waist.

_They’re armed and want to be able to reach their guns fast. This is so not good._ She thought. _I need to get in there and see what’s going on._

“Peter,” she said, “I need to get in there and see what’s going on. Will you keep me updated on what’s happening out here?”

“Already on it. Don’t worry, no one’s coming here without my knowledge.” Peter was perched on the roof of the office building. He has a perfect view of her warehouse and the gate a car must enter through to get here. She’ll be safe with him watching out for her.

“Thanks. Hey Spider, I won’t be able to respond once I’m inside, but keep me posted. Cat out.”

With that, she shot across the roof and to the skylights. Spotting one skylight sitting above a support beam, she slipped through it and settled in to listen on the meeting.

She didn’t have to wait long. Frank ushered the mystery team inside and began the chatting up process. It wasn’t until he started asking questions that she payed close attention.

“I was going to call you once the painting was dropped off. What are you doing here so early?” Frank asked.

The black-haired man with the crew-cut and stern expression responded. “This painting is very important to us. We wanted to be here to receive it.”

Frank shifted in his seat. Eyes roaming the room. Briefly, Felicia wondered if he was searching for her in the shadows. It wouldn’t be absurd. He knew she could be dropping it off at any moment.

“I understand your eagerness to get the painting. It’s not every day we’re hired to rob a target of this caliber, but my thief will not show up if they spot you or your vehicle here. It’s strictly enforced in their terms. I’m sorry, but you must leave if you want the painting.”

Wow, this was the first time she’s ever heard Frank attempt to protect her as a thief. It’s almost touching.    

“We understand. Protecting one’s assets is of the utmost importance.” Crew-cut stood up. “Though I must ask, did the thief in question mention anything she found in the painting?”

Frank didn’t miss a beat. He’s good. “No, they didn’t, but I’ll be sure to ask if they did. As a rule, we go on radio silence until the job is done to prevent anyone from getting a lead on us.”

Frank noticed the guy’s slip up too. No one said the thief was a girl. She had to force down the feeling of dread which arose from this reveal.

_If they know I’m a girl, then what else do they know?_

“Cat, we’ve got a problem. Three more cars are pulling into the docks and they’re coming straight for you.” Peter’s voice fills her ear.

Shit. This isn’t good. She hears the cars pull up from her perch in the support beams. If she runs now, she risks being spotted by the newcomers to their little party.

“Shit.” Well isn’t that the word of the day. “Cat, they’ve got guns. I’m seeing pistols and a few rifles.” She can hear Peter shuffling around through the comms. “Okay, rifle guys are heading farther out, and pistols are surrounding the warehouse. You need to get out.”

She contemplated responding to Peter, even though it would be a risk, but Frank spoke up before she could decide.

“I know Hydra wants their painting but bringing in the extra manpower seems unnecessary. Don’t you think, Bruno?”

Bruno, formerly known as crew-cut, looks startled. He was hoping to surprise Frank, but Frank keeps his security around the warehouse tight.

_I would know. It took me a solid two months to slip in here without being noticed. Time consuming, but worth it._

“You should have not tried to send us away.” Bruno’s recovered his speech capabilities. Good for him. “Now, we can eliminate you, and steal the painting from the girl and her little friend when they arrive.”

Her world froze. Hydra knows about Peter. They know about her. _Those bastards must have been watching us since the heist. I wonder if they know I have the drive. Okay, enough sleuthing. It’s time to listen to Peter and get out of here._

“Solid plan.” Frank moves away from the Hydra members to behind his desk. “Except, you haven’t surprised me, and you won’t catch me.”

Bruno scoffs. “And what makes you say that?”

Frank tilts his head and gives a half smile. “This.”

Suddenly, the room erupts with a bright flash and a smoke cloud fills the space where Frank once stood. There’s silence the Hydra agents too stunned to move. What spurs them into action is the sound of a boat turning on and jettisoning from the dock at full speed. Bruno yells to his team and they take off out the back door. Felicia may not have liked Frank, but she had to admit, he had style.

Plus, his distraction has given her the perfect opportunity to slip out of here unnoticed. She slowly rises from her position and walks toward the skylight. Cracking it open ever so carefully to not make a sound, she slips through the narrow gap it creates and gently sets it back into place.

“Ah, you must be the cat. Boss said you liked to enter through the roof.”

Felicia whipped around to face this mystery man. He was tall, well-built, and had a pistol aimed right at her.

“I’ll take care of the girl.” He spoke into his comms. “Jason, finish off her friend.”

Peter.

* * *

 

As Peter Parker stares down the barrel of a gun, he supposes that it all went wrong after he agreed to hear a plan from a girl named Felicia Hardy.

Well, that’s not entirely true. Everything really went wrong when some baddies crashed the meeting and one snuck up onto the roof to kill him. Yeah, this would so be classified as a turn for the worst.

“Hey buddy, I don’t know if anyone told you, but it’s rude to steal somebody’s roof.”

“Shut up, kid.” The man said. He was at least six-four and built of muscle. Great. Just great.

“Kid?!” Peter said, incredulous. “If I didn’t have somewhere else to be right now, we’d be having words.”

Before the human brick wall got a chance to respond, Peter launched his web shooters at him. The web attached itself to the gun and Peter yanked it out of his grasp. Not wasting a second, Peter raced to the ledge on the roof and threw himself off like the night before.

_I hope this doesn’t become a pattern, but with how this week’s been going, it probably will be._ Peter thinks as he lowers to the ground.

His lucky break comes in the form of one of the bud guys’ SUVs being left open and unguarded. He sneaks over to the driver’s side to find the key still in the ignition. “Hello getaway car.” Peter whispered to the vehicle as he climbed inside. “How about we grab a black cat for luck, and hit the road?”

* * *

 

This jerk was going to pay. Felicia charged forward. The thought of these guys hurting Peter sent her over the edge and the punch she delivered to the guy’s face was met with a sickening crack. Blood poured from her victim’s nose.

He recovered quickly though. Too close to shoot her, he opted instead for trying to slam the barrel of the gun into the side of her head.

Too slow. The Black Cat had taken over and she was a natural fighter. Cat ducked in time to avoid the blow and deliver another punch to the man’s groin. He doubled over in pain. Understandable with how hard she hits. However, he still had a hold of the gun. She moved to kick it out of his hand, but he saw the move coming and dodged. Not before punching her in the stomach.

The blow momentarily knocked the wind out of her. No time for this. The Black Cat needed to move. The man was in the process of standing when she charged at him again. Leaping into the air, she hopped onto his shoulders and used her legs to pin his arms in place. The grappling hook in her suit’s wrist was pulled out. The rope was pressed against his neck and held there even as he fought to get her off. Finally, his thrashing slowed, and he fell to the roof unconscious.

Not wanting a murder in her ledger, Black Cat crouched down an felt for the man’s pulse. It was still there.

She moved to the edge of the roof’s right side and kept herself as low to the ground as possible in order to avoid detection. Once she reached the pulley jutting from the side of the building, she hooked the claws of her grappling hook into it and repelled herself down.

Time to find Peter and get out of here. She didn’t see any Hydra goons wandering around on this side of the warehouse, but it didn’t mean they weren’t hidden somewhere. She needed to get out of the open.

In the next instant, Peter’s voice nearly blew out her eardrum.

“Down!!!” Peter screamed.

Fueled by trust in Peter, adrenaline, and instinct, Felicia dropped to the ground without a moment’s hesitation.

Bullets rained down where she was previously standing, shattering the window behind her.

Perfect.

She ran behind the stack of crates a few yards ahead. Bullets trailing her steps.

Felicia cringed as a piece of wood flew off the furthermost crate. She mentally calculated how long they would last under gunfire. At this rate, not long.

“Peter,” The hopefulness in her voice is obvious. “You wouldn’t happen to be available to save my ass again, would you?”

Peter’s soft laugh can be heard. “It’ll be tight, but I think I can pencil you in. Hold on.”

A black SUV barrels around the corner. Blocking out the bullets’ path to her for the time being. The passenger door is pushed open and Peter is waving her in. She dashes into the vehicle and slams the door behind her.

“You have no idea how happy I was when I found out this was bulletproof.” Peter said. He gives the wheel a hard jerk and soon they’re making their way out of the docks and onto New York’s streets.

“Wait, did you not know this car was bulletproof when you saved me?”

Peter had the decency to look sheepish as he replied, “no.”

“You idiot!” She slapped his arm. “You could have been killed by those guys! Honestly, you have zero self-preservation skills. I have to have them for the both of us.”

* * *

 

“Tony! You’re going to want to look at this.” Rhodey said. He threw Tony the surveillance report from Natasha. Her and Clint were systematically checking popular docks for importing and exporting stolen goods.  

Tony grabbed the report and flicked through the bits of information they could gather. “So, a gun fight happens within twenty-four hours of our robbery. Didn’t thinks fences moved goods that fast these days.”

“They don’t. From what Nat and Clint told me over the phone, it looks like someone showed up uninvited and the occupants bailed. The desk was burned up like a controlled explosive was set up in it. My guess is it was the distraction for the getaway.”

Tony stretched and took a closer look at the damage. The bullets were being fired at people, but there was no evidence of return fire. So, whoever stole their disc either doesn’t like guns or didn’t have any for the fight.

“Anything else?” Tony asked.

“Yeah.” Rhodey said. “We found one of the guys who charged the place unconscious on the roof. Nat and Clint are going to interrogate him. They have reason to believe these guys were tracking our thieves since the heist and might know where we can find them.”

“Perfect. We just need to find our thieves before them.”

* * *

 

Peter and Felicia sat in the public library on high alert. The outdated computer was slowly loading the information on the drive, but it was taking far too long for Felicia. The two had already dropped the stolen car off near a chop shop, so it should be stolen again and dismantled shortly. There wasn’t any information on them inside it, thankfully. So, Felicia asked Peter to head to the library. One, for its high level of witnesses and hard to trace computers, and two, because she needed to know what Hydra wanted off the drive.

Peter tapped his fingers on the table as he watched the screen load. “Why are we doing this again?”

“Because we need to know what’s on it. It has to be something good for Hydra to start shooting us for it.”

“Yeah, I think Hydra would shoot us regardless. They aren’t really people persons.”

Felicia shot him an unamused look. She had tried to break the Hydra news gently, but there was no use. This was why no one wanted the job. They all must have bailed when they learned it was for Hydra, which is why she wasn’t told. The Black Cat was conned into a mission to steal from one dangerous gang for another dangerous gang. A catch 22 if there ever was one.

“Wait a minute.” Peter clicked and typed furiously as coding data flashed onto the screen. “This isn’t intel. It’s a program. Shit, and it’s tracing us. Hold on.” Peter pressed a few more keys and ripped the USB out of its slot.

“What’s going on?” Felicia was slipping the drive into the backpack which stashed their gear and the painting which started this mess.

“We need to move.” Peter stood from the chair and hauled Felicia up with him. He spoke again once they were a few blocks from the library. “I was able to bypass the tracker so it could only give a general area, but it wouldn’t pinpoint our exact location.”

“Way to go, Spider.” Felicia was impressed. She knew Peter was good, but not go against Stark tech good. “You said it’s a program? Could you find out for what?”

“It’s like a computer virus on steroids. This thing can break through firewalls like nothing. I’m pretty sure I could have gained access to the Pentagon with it.”

“Wow.” Felicia said.

“Wow is correct.” Peter leaned closer to her as they walked. “I think Tony Stark himself designed it. He called it Ultron.”

* * *

 

“The guy we found is from Hydra.” Clint said to the assembled Avengers. “They hired a fence to hire some thieves, but only asked for the painting. I think when they heard Ultron was in the painting, they thought you hid some sort of coding in it. They figured out their mistake when they saw one of the thieves holding a black box.”

“Great. We have to fight Hydra for Ultron.” Steve said. “Do we have an idea on where Ultron is, or who stole it?”

In answer, Jarvis spoke up. “Sir, Ultron has been activated.”

“Awesome Jarvis,” Tony said. “Where is my super virus?”

“Well, whoever activated him noticed my trace and countered it. I was able to get a general area, which I’m sending you now, but not an exact location. I suspect the users have fled the area, but I think they are heading toward Queens based on their last known location.”

“Alright. Nat, Clint, you’re with me. Tony, can you and Bruce try to I.D. our thieves?” Steve asked.

“Already on it, Cap. I swear, it’s like you don’t even know me sometimes.” Tony feigned hurt at Steve’s request. Steve, in response, rolled his eyes and continued out of the room.

Turning to Clint and Nat he said, “suit up. We’re heading to Queens.”    

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading this story, leaving kudos, bookmarking it, and sending me such sweet comments. You guys are the best.   
> As you can tell, Peter and Felicia are in more trouble than anyone thought, and now, they have the Avengers hot on their trail. For those of you who have been patiently waiting for their first encounter with the Avengers, it's coming. Though don't worry too much, I would never let anyone hurt our heroes on my watch. I won't give away too much about the next chapter, but I will tell you this:  
> Us spiders gotta stick together.  
> Anyways, see you next chapter! Hope you have a wonderful day wherever you are!


	6. On The Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The pieces fall right into place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I am writing this, One For The Money has 903 reads. I can't believe it. When I posted this story, I thought I would be lucky to get 50 reads. To be less than one hundred reads from hitting a thousand is unbelievable. Your love for this story makes it all the better. Thank you for everything.

The little Queens apartment was a hurricane of movement. Felicia was piling any and all papers related to, or referencing, the Avengers into a metal trash can. She was planning to burn it on the roof later.

Peter, busy as ever, was loading up their backpacks with anything they couldn’t live without. For himself, pictures of everyone he cares about, toiletries, and whatever clothes they had in their measly wardrobe. For Felicia, it was her favorite blanket in the apartment, the stuffed bear he won her at Coney Island (he won MJ a tiger), and a black bag containing forged passports for the both of them and all the cash they have. The third backpack was arguably the most important for it contained their suits, the painting, and Ultron.

Peter was stilled floored about that. I mean, getting to look at Stark tech was cool, but to beat out his own systems was on another level. Ultron was like a back door to every secure server in the world. Information would be available at the touch of a finger. Money too. Peter didn’t get a good look, but bank accounts weren’t impossible to access with Ultron, and if one was careful enough, account transfers would be possible.

Ultron could also track them and wasn’t that just the problem of the day. Peter and Felicia had run to their apartment as quickly as possible. Once they arrived, her orders were clear. Pack your go bag and let’s get as far away as we can. They’re coming for us.

Which begs his question to Felicia as he zips the last bag. She’s halfway out the window to the fire escape with the trash can and a box of matches.

“Why did we come here and not hide in your safehouse?”

She froze. “I already told you.”

He sat down on the couch and patted the spot next to him. “Tell me again.” After a beat. “Please.”

She didn’t sit down on the couch. Instead, choosing to sit on the windowsill. “Let me set a small, controlled fire on the roof and I’ll tell you.”

She didn’t wait for a response before she darted up the steps as fast as a person lugging a small trash can could. Brat.

In five minutes, she was back. Darting through the window and onto the couch. “We are here because the safehouse isn’t safe and neither is the apartment, but the apartment is less not safe than the safehouse. Do you get it?”

“Ummm. No.”

She gave an overdramatic sigh but continued her explanation. “When that Hydra guy caught me on the roof, he only knew me as the cat and called you my friend. I think they found out Frank had hired the Black Cat, but they didn’t know my identity because of the disguise. So, they probably followed us back to the safehouse, which I am forever grateful I used a fake name with, and tracked our movements to the warehouse. That’s why they showed up right when we did.

“Therefore, the safehouse is no longer safe because Hydra is probably waiting there for us. I’ll admit, if I had known about the tracker in Ultron, I would have picked a library much farther away from our apartment, but it is what it is. The Avengers are no doubt on their way to Queens. Wouldn’t shock me if Stark hacked security and traffic cameras to follow us back, but at least here, we have the element of them not knowing exactly where we live to help us. Now, can we please get going? I’ve already payed off the guy with all the cats downstairs to grab the trash can and dump the ashes later tonight, so if the bags are ready, we need to leave.”

“Okay. Hey, did you see the news yet?” Peter asked as he shouldered the two backpacks with their personal belongings and handed Felicia the one with their gear. She unzipped the bag and handed Peter his web shooters.

“Just in case.” She said with a wink. “And yeah, I asked a few of my crime friends about it. They told me to avoid Hell’s Kitchen and gang hideouts for the next few weeks. Apparently, Barnes and some Avengers were sending a message.”

“More than a message. There are dozens of reports of fires and riots all over town. I think there’s still trouble in Hell’s Kitchen. No one’s said anything, but I think Barnes is still there with some Avengers.”

“Well then,” she said as they made their way onto the fire escape, “let’s hope Barnes keeps busy there and doesn’t come after us here.”

They make their way up the escape in silence. Hands grasping the railings as they climbed to the roof. It wasn’t that the roof was scary at night, it was more like the strange groans sounded like a crazy axe murderer was hiding in the shadows. Perfectly normal assumption.

Peter was walking around the trash can when Felicia shoved him full force. He stumbled away from it and was about to inquire on her sanity when a shiny arrow pierced the trashcan he’d been standing in front of.

The two made eye contact and bolted from the open ground to the air ducts sticking out of the roof. The only cover afforded to them. Another arrow would have shot Felicia if she didn’t leap behind the duct in time.

Felicia pulled him so his back was flush to the cool metal of the duct. Her eyes roamed over his body checking for injuries. “We have to get to the next building. Hawkeye’s here.”

He nods in affirmation. Not trusting the fear he’s feeling to not seep into his voice. Soon, she’s grabbing his arm and pulling them both up to a crouch. They make a silent run and leap off the roof, hidden by pipes and ventilation. Landing on the east end of the next apartment complex in a roll, they shot across to the west end. Letting the shadows envelop them.

It’s times such as this when Peter sees the Black Cat in action. Cold precision and absolute grace. If anyone can get them out of here alive, its her.

* * *

 

 _What is with targets assuming they’re safe the minute they jump to a different roof?_ Natasha thinks to herself as she emerges from the shadows of the same roof their thieves landed on.

It wasn’t hard to figure out they would come here. This is the only roof they could jump to safely from their apartment and once she ordered Clint to fire off a few warning shots it was all it took for them to leap right into her trap.

Of course, she also took into account that super rope Stark had mentioned, so she had Steve waiting in the shadows on the ground. Ready to catch them before they could duck into the network of back alleys.

She crept closer to the pair. Definitely male and female. Glancing around her, she dared to take a few steps closer to bring her right behind the pair. Still hidden, but close enough to hear. No one could blame Natasha for her curiosity. Nobody robbed the Avengers. They were far too powerful and too dangerous, but these two did it anyway.

“What do you mean you forgot to load the web shooters?” The woman whisper yelled to the man. Web shooters? Is that seriously what they call the rope? _Okay, having them rob us is getting embarrassing._

At this the man replied, “well, I was busy packing and we must have used the last of it at the docks. You know, when I saved you.”

Okay, that confirms what her and Clint found at the docks earlier. That was an hour past sunset. Its nearly midnight, and Natasha was more than ready to return to her floor in the tower.

She was about to make her move, gun at the ready, when the two thieves turned around.

It was still dark, but it was as though the world had been suddenly illuminated in brilliant color as they faced her. She couldn’t look away from them. They were children, _children,_ and she was about to shoot them on a roof.

The Black Cat was a teenager. That’s why she was so difficult for Hydra to track. They were looking for seasoned criminals, but Natasha highly doubted those two had been in the business for a single season.

Soon the girl was wrapping her arms around the boy. She thought they were going to kiss as most teens in love did, but instead, the boy leapt off the roof and nearly stopped her heart. Racing to the ledge, she almost didn’t look over, but she needed to see. What she saw made her let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. The two were descending to the streets below. Only stopping at a ledge farther down to reshoot the rope. This was how they got away in Brooklyn. Impressive.

No time for that now. Natasha had a new problem to contend with. Steve and Clint.

“Black Widow,” the comm crackled to life, “do you copy?”

Steve’s voice held the touch of genuine concern which never lasted long in this kind of work, but he still found time for it. Natasha watched as the teens reached ground and dodged into the darkest alley available. Clever little things.

“I copy, Cap.” Natasha still stood on the west end of the roof but spied the fire escape on the south end. It may not give them much time, but it’s the best she can give them for now. “Looks like our contingency was needed after all. They shot down the fire escape as soon as they landed. You should go now. They’re probably heading south down the alleys.”

“Copy that. See you both down here.” Steve said.

She’s given them a chance. Now, she needs to find out who these kids are.

* * *

 

They didn’t speak to each other until they were on the subway. For an hour, they had been running through New York attempting to escape their pursuers. The Avengers were after them. It’s official now.

Sat alone on a subway car, too late in the night for there to be any real crowd, they watched the tunnel walls blur in silence.

At least, they did, until Felicia broke it.

“They let us go.” She was staring out the window, but she wasn’t looking out of it. No, she was ruminating on how they managed to escape trained killers without so much as a scratch. That wasn’t possible with their kind.

“Wh-what?” Peter stuttered out, broken out of his own thoughts by her words.

“On the roof, when the web shooters were being reloaded,” she held up a hand to stop what she was sure was Peter’s profuse apologies for the mistake, “there had to be more of them than just Hawkeye. Someone let us go.”

“Or, you’re too good to get caught.” Peter nudged her shoulder, but her mind was elsewhere.

“We got lucky with the arrows because he was shooting to wound, not to kill. He wouldn’t have done that just to let us go. You know that roof we jumped onto?” Peter nods in understanding. She continued. “I picked it because it’s the only roof a person can safely jump to. The others were either too tall or too short. If I wanted to lure someone into a kill zone, I would have spooked them off of our roof and had another person waiting to make the kill once the targets landed. They would have known that too, which means there was someone on the roof with us who let us go.”

“Why?” Peter asked.

She still didn’t have an answer, and she didn’t like it.

* * *

 

“So, you going to tell me why you lied to Cap, or do I have to guess?” Clint had wandered into Natasha’s room. His hair still damp from the shower. Without waiting to be invited, he flopped himself down onto her bed and watched as she typed into her secure laptop. So secure, it would take Jarvis a good bit of time to hack it.

Natasha turned from her seat at the desk to look at Clint. She had been wondering when he’d call her out on her lie but had hoped he would have forgotten it by now.

“Who says I lied?” Natasha feigned innocence.

“Cut the bull.” Clint shot back. “I sent them right to you, but you didn’t take the shot. Hell, I’ve seen you shoot targets with ten times shorter windows than what you had.”

Before she answered him, her eyes roamed to the clock on the wall. Three in the morning. She needs to work faster. Maybe an ally could help her find information.

“I wanted to see them.” She began. “No one robs us, and I wanted to know if they were geniuses or idiots before I killed them.”

“So what? You didn’t get a good enough look or something?”

“No, I got a good look.” Suddenly, their faces flash back into her mind. Bright eyes and shaking hands. “That was the problem, actually. Clint, they were kids.”

Clint stared at her for a minute. Not comprehending her words. Finally, he spoke. “When you say kids, you mean…”

“Teenagers.”

“Oh, good. Here I was worried we got robbed by eight-year-olds. Ow!” The punch she delivered to his shoulder was swift and efficient.

“Seriously, Nat,” Clint said. “What does it matter? They robbed us, we shoot them, and the world goes back to normal. Why agonize over this?”

If he had asked her that question five minutes after she let them go, she wouldn’t have had an answer. Now, she did. “Why did you care so much about the twins?”

Clint sighed in resignation. He knew he had lost the battle. “They had a shitty lot in life, loads of potential, and needed some form of family. Not like this is a good one, but it works on a good day.” He looked her in the eyes. “You see the same thing with them, and you want to save them.”

It wasn’t a question. It was a statement.

“I do.” She said simply.

“Alright.” He said. “What do you have so far?” He got a small smile from Natasha in return. Barely a quirk of her lips, but he saw it.

“The girl is the Black Cat. Her M.O. is jewelry heists with a few stolen art pieces thrown in the mix, which is why she was called in by a fence to steal the painting. The boy is known locally in Queens as Spider-Man. He isn’t a thief, though, more of a Robin Hood type. Rumors in the criminal circuit suggest he used to rob big companies who ripped off their clients, or rich assholes in general, and donated it all to charities. Did a lot of good until he went off the radar a year ago. The next time people saw him, he was doing side work for the Black Cat. She doesn’t partner up a lot, so they must know each other on a personal level. I haven’t found anything to suggest they’re together, but they could be hiding it well.”

“Anything on their personal lives? Do we have names, or ages, or anything?” Clint asked.

“That’s the problem. Stark tracked them from the library after Jarvis picked up on the building’s security cameras how they entered and exited within the window of Ultron’s launch, but the girl kept the boy’s head down the whole way. Tony was only able to follow their clothes and hair back to the apartment.”

“Wow, Stark’s A-game isn’t as good as it used to be.”

“He didn’t need his A-game, just a photo for Jarvis to track. Which, he got. Albeit not a good one, but he could make up the difference.” She said clicking onto a new screen. “I’ve been searching through government databases for them, but it’s slow. They aren’t in the system, so I’m guessing their runaways, but neither are listed as missing persons. I have to find out who they are soon. Barnes is on their trail and he won’t hold back, even if they’re only teens.”

Clint let out a low whistle. “Tony and Steve approved Barnes for this mission? He’s been ready to kill someone since the Brooklyn building was robbed, and that was before we found out Ultron was taken.”

“Barnes gets results. Plus, Tony didn’t okay it unless Steve went with him as a glorified babysitter. I think Tony’s pissed for Barnes’ antics in Hell’s Kitchen ending up on the news.”

“Alright, so time isn’t our friend here.” Clint reached over and pulled the laptop from the desk and onto the bed. He motioned for her to come over. Settling down, he opened up a new database for New York hospitals. “If these kids are runaways, then we might be able to find something on a relative getting killed.”

“How will that work if I don’t even know their names?” Natasha asked as she watched Clint work.

“Easy.” A smug smile overtaking his features. “We search for any male or female who was put into the hospital when Spider-Man disappeared. Something must have happened to make him quit.”

Natasha adds some lines of coding into his work as she comes up with a profile for the boy. “It would have to be someone single, either by choice or widowed, and old enough to be either a parent or legal guardian to a teen. We can also put in some parameters for the patient’s approved visitors list.”

Soon, the two spies worked through file after file. Waiting for one to jump out at them. An hour later, they found one.

“Wait! Stop there.” Natasha grabbed the laptop from Clint. “May Parker. Died of cancer about a year ago. Days after Spider-Man’s last appearance. Queens resident who lost her husband, Ben Parker six months earlier to a robbery gone wrong. Look at this, she had one visitor sign in every day. Peter Parker.”

“Nat, I think we just found our boy.” He looked out the window. “And it’s almost sunrise.”

Nerves she didn’t know she had crept up on her. They were running out of time. “We can do this. We’ve done far more with less.”

* * *

 

It was dawn and by some miracle they were still uncaptured and alive. They spent the night hopping from one subway to the next. Attempting to get as far from Queens as possible. Now, they were hiding away at a train station waiting for the 6:15 am to Washington DC. From there, they would go anywhere they could hide. Wait out the storm until it was safe to leave the country.

“I like England. I mean, I’ve never been there, but it seems cool. You’d like the music scene.” Peter said as they sat on the bench. Felicia has been watching the entrances like a hawk. He could tell how much she despised waiting around, but there was nothing to be done.

“Come on, Fel, give me something to work with here.” Peter bumped his shoulder into Felicia’s. She gave him a sideways glance, but finally replied.

“I’ll calm down when we’re settled down some place quiet and no one’s hunting us. Not the Avengers, not Hydra, not anyone.”

“Well, until then,” he gestured toward the rest of the people at the train station, “why don’t you help me think of places we can run off to?”

It was then that he noticed the pattern. He grabbed her arm and said, “did you see that guy in the corner?”

“Which corner?” Felicia asked. Her eyes casually searching with a sharpness bred from years of stakeouts.

“10 o’clock. He’s wearing a white shirt with a black jacket and a baseball cap.”

“Yeah I see him. What about him?” As her eyes lock on her target, Peter can tell the Cat has taken over. Her muscles tightly coiled and ready to run from any threat.

He shifts his weight so both backpacks could sit comfortably on his shoulders. “I saw him looking for someone outside. Then he circled around here fifteen minutes ago while you were in the bathroom, but he was doing his best to not look at me. I think he was checking the exits and figuring out where you went. Now, he’s ten yards away and checking to make sure we’re still here every few minutes.”

“Peter, your surveillance skills are borderline natural.” Felicia stood up and offered her hand to him. “Want to go get some breakfast at the diner we passed?”

Peter didn’t know what to say to that. He was expecting the Cat to whip out some throwing knives or a grappling hook. Not invite him to breakfast, but the look in her eyes was lethal. “Yeah, sure. Want pancakes or waffles?”

A Cheshire Cat smile takes over. “Pancakes.”

Soon they’re walking out of the train station and toward a diner which looks like it’s from the sixties.

“Sam Wilson.” Felicia said as they walked. At his confused expression she continued. “That’s who was at the train station, and who’s currently following us to the diner.”

“Fantastic. Are there more around?”

“Definitely. When we reach the stop sign up ahead, we’re going to turn left and run down the road as fast as we can.”

Peter’s blood is pounding in his ears. “Okay.”

“Alright then, let’s go.” Felicia breaks into a run and Peter follows suit. They hear footsteps rushing behind them.

* * *

 

“Tony! Tony!” Clint yelled into the lab.

Tony nearly threw his cup of coffee in surprise. “What the fuck is wrong with you two?”

“Tony,” Natasha said. “You need to call Steve and have him stop Bucky from making the kill.”

“Look, I’d love to. Really, I would, but they have had Sam watching the pair for an hour. Just got a text that the thieves are running right into Bucky’s trap and he’s going to take them out. Why do you care so much? We got all the information we needed out of the Hydra lackey.” Tony set his coffee down and went back to tinkering on one of Clint’s arrows.

“I care because we’re about to cross a new line.” She threw the files on Felicia Hardy and Peter Parker on the table. “Read.”

Rolling his eyes, Tony picked up the files and flipped through them. His eyes widened for a second before he schooled his expression. “They were hired. It’s not like anyone forced them into this job.”

Clint jumped in. “The girl has potential and the boy is a certified genius. We can’t waste this.”

“Steve would never forgive you if you let him kill a couple of sixteen-year-olds.” Natasha finally said. If that didn’t work, then Pepper would be brought into the conversation. That usually got the quickest results.

“Dammit. Fine. Here, you win.” He pulled a burner phone from his pocket and handed it to Natasha. “Fair warning, you and I both know Barnes works fast. The mission might be over by now.”

“For once, let’s hope it’s not.” Natasha said as she punched Steve’s emergency number into the phone.

“By the way, we’re not running a home for troubled youth here. I refuse to babysit a couple of brats.” Tony said as Natasha willed Steve to pick up the damn phone.

“Whatever Stark.” Clint said. Despite Tony’s aloofness, everyone knew he didn’t like the thought of killing two teenagers over tech. That’s something Stane would do, not Tony, and the world should be grateful for it.

* * *

 

Steve Rogers watched as the Winter Soldier marched to his prey. They had been following the pair for twenty minutes. Picking up right where Sam left off when the two bolted.

Sam was his friend, but he would be the first to admit that Sam’s skills lied strictly in piloting and combat. Covert missions involving casually following or watching trained operatives were not.

The thieves were good. Ducking into shops around town. Stole some sunglasses and baseball caps to hide their hair and faces. Pretty decent, but there was a sort of bumbling which followed their movements. The woman was borderline natural at this sort of thing, but the man needed some work. If the reports on the robbery were correct, then the woman was the thief and the man was the hacker, which would explain a lot.

It wouldn’t matter soon enough. The Winter Soldier had chased them into an old junkyard. The place looks like it hasn’t been maintained for years and whatever security cameras are present can be disabled with a brick or a bullet.

The thieves were running again. Straight for a group of abandoned cars. Big mistake. The Winter Soldier jumped over the hood of an old Honda Civic brandishing a knife in his flesh hand, his gloved metal one glinting dangerously in the sun. He knocked the man over and went for the woman. She screamed Peter when the man, now Peter, fell. She immediately jumped into hand to hand combat with the Winter Soldier, but Steve wasn’t paying attention.

 _Did her voice sound young?_ He thought. There was no one around to confirm this thought. Sam was waiting for them on the Quinjet, and Bucky was in Winter Soldier mode, where eliminating the target was the only thing that mattered to him.

Then, his burner phone rang. He picked it up as he continued to watch the fight. Peter had gotten up, but it was clear the woman was trying to keep the fight away from him and Bucky’s attention focused on her.

“What’s up, Tones?” Steve asked. It was unusual for Tony to use their burners during an active mission, but not unheard of.

“Steve, it’s Nat.” Natasha’s voice filled the other end of the line.

“Nat? What happened to Tony? Is he alright?” Having another person use the burner was almost unheard of and it set Steve on edge.

“Everyone’s fine.” Nat began. Her voice taking on that cool assertiveness she was known for. “Has Bucky killed the thieves yet?”

“No. He’s going to finish it soon, but he wanted to take them out with the knife before he used a gun. Less noise. More personal. You know how he gets.” Steve replied.

The woman dodged the punch Bucky sent her way but wasn’t quick enough to out-maneuver Bucky’s leg as it swept her feet out from under her. She fell to the ground with a thud. It would be over for her soon enough. Peter would be next, but he might get bullets instead of knives. Depends if Bucky got bored fighting her or not.

“You need to stop him.” That makes him pause.

“Why?” He notes the urgency he heard in her voice.

“The thieves are a couple sixteen-year-olds, Rogers. Call Bucky off now!” Nat yells.

Suddenly, it all clicks into place. The girl’s voice, their bumbling as if they weren’t trained for this, and Sam’s initial inability to find them at the train station. He was looking for adults, not barely adults.

Burner phone still in hand, Steve runs toward Bucky. Bucky who’s about to impale a sixteen-year-old girl. The adrenaline is shooting through him as he slams into Bucky. He hears a startled grunt from his friend who tries to shove him off, but he doesn’t have time for it.

“Grab the boy, but don’t kill him. Just knock him out with Banner’s injections. I’ve got the girl.”

The girl in question is running to the boy, but she doesn’t get far before Steve catches her. Arms wrapping around her middle he hoists her up enough so she can’t kick off the ground. He catches a flailing punch to the jaw, but she doesn’t get much farther once the sedative is stabbed into the open skin of her neck. It works fast and soon she’s out like a light.

Bruce developed the pocket-sized sedatives for easy transport of targets they needed to question. They could be used by hand, launched from one of Clint’s arrows, or shot from a gun. Right now, they were saving the lives of two teenagers.

He lowered the girl’s limp form to the ground as Bucky walked back to him. The boy was unconscious a few yards back, but he must have put up a fight if Bucky’s split lip and pissed off expression were anything to go by.

“What the hell was that, Cap?!” Bucky is seething now. “I could have shoved a knife through your damn throat! What’s wrong with you?”

Steve put his hands up. “I got a call from Nat. Buck, they’re kids.”

“Kids? What are you talking about?” Bucky looked ready to punch Steve in the face.

“Look at their faces, Buck. Those two aren’t adults. I think they’re barely sixteen.”

Finally, Bucky looked down at the girl. Really looked. Awake, she looked lethal, but her face, now relaxed from the sedative, showed gentle features and a youthful glow. Hell, she looked younger than sixteen right now.          

It was then that Steve remembered Natasha was still on the line. He fished the phone out of his pocket where he stuffed it to go after the girl.

“You still there?” He asked.

“Did you stop him?” Her tone was ice. If he had failed, he shudders to think what her reaction might have been.

“I stopped him, but,” he looked down at the girl and then over to the boy, “what are we going to do with them?”

He could hear a muffled debate in the background. It ended with what he was sure was Tony’s voice going, _Fine, but they’re your responsibility, and if they get out, it’s on you._

If they get out. A part of Steve long buried didn’t like where this conversation was going.  

“Steve,” Nat’s voice returned. “Bring them back to the tower. I think you’re looking at our newest recruits.”

Bucky, who had been listening in on the phone call since he asked what to do with the kids, looked startled. That said a lot for him. However, he was still under orders, so he simply nodded at Steve and went to sling Peter over his shoulder.

Steve picked the girl up a bit more gently. Cringing at the bruises starting to form from her fight with Buck.

“Come on kid,” he spoke to her, “Let’s go home.”

The two soldiers walked back to the Quinjet in silence. Sam looked ready to explode with questions once they boarded, but Bucky’s glare quieted him down, though Steve was sure he heard some explicit muttering about where Bucky could shove it.

The only words said the whole flight back to Avengers Tower was Bucky’s suggestion that they place restraints on the teens in case they woke up during the flight. Steve vetoed the order outright.

These kids didn’t need to start their new lives in chains they could see.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's finally happened!!! This chapter was a blast to write and I hope you enjoy it. I wanted to say a massive thank you to anyone who has read this story. It means so much to me that you like it and are interested.
> 
> I didn't mention Captain America's suit in this chapter, but for future reference (and because you guys are so wonderful, I wanted to give you a little surprise) his suit is the concept art suit from Captain America Civil War. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you can find it easily online. I loved the full black design, the scales, and the painted Avengers logo on the chest. Truly wish they used it in the films. He suffered the same fate as Spider-Man where the red, white, and blue design didn't fit the covert part of his new job. Also, Bucky's suit is his Winter Soldier suit from Captain America The Winter Soldier. 
> 
> Hope you all have a wonderful day wherever you are! See you next chapter when our favorite duo finally meets the Avengers.


	7. Home For Troubled Criminals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I've been the archer. I've been the prey.

Felicia woke to the sound of an engine whirring beneath her. Well, not beneath her exactly, but all around her. For a moment before she opened her tired eyes, she thought she was on the train with Peter. She’d never been on a train before this. Maybe this is what they sounded like.

However, as her eyes adjusted to the train compartment’s lights, she realized she wasn’t in a train at all, but instead some high-tech military plane.

 _How did I get on a plane, and why am I so tried?_ She thought. Her body felt like lead and her head swam as it attempted to piece together the series of events which led her to this moment.

Her eyes were barely open, but in the corner of her field of vision sat a metal arm. It looked to be something out of a science fiction novel. Though as she cautiously dragged her eyes to get a better look, she found the arm to be connected to a body. A familiar body.

_Why do I know you?_

It hit her like the train she was supposed to be on right about now. Wilson following them, the fight with Barnes, Rogers showing up, and Peter unconscious.

_Peter. Where is Peter?_

She had to fight every urge in her body to not jolt upright and look for him. As of right now, Barnes appeared unaware of her conscious state and it was best to keep it that way. She couldn’t look for Peter if they stuck her with one of those sedatives again.

So, careful to keep her breathing even and eyes as closed as possible, she took in her surroundings. The bed she was lying on wasn’t a bed so much as a cot built into the wall. There was another above her, maybe more. Peter thankfully was within view.

He was still out of it from the injection, but he looked relatively unharmed. Bruises from the fight littered his arms and there was a nasty black eye forming. His lip was split and there were a few scrapes on his arms, but no major wounds. He’s safe.

Well, as safe as either one of them could be.

Rogers and Wilson must be in another compartment or in the cockpit. Barnes was watching them. Goody. He was cleaning a pistol meticulously. She closed her eyes and listened to the plane. Best to play it safe in case one of them decided to check on her.

It was then she realized the whirring she heard earlier was the plane’s landing gear being deployed. The plane was making a sharper turn than what was possible for any commercial sized aircraft, which meant it was small. A jet maybe? It didn’t matter. They had reached their destination. They had reached their fate.

The Avengers wanted them alive, but she wasn’t sure why. Barnes was obviously approved for the kill, so what gives? The only logical explanation is they want to know about Frank’s whereabouts and then they’ll kill them. She won’t let that happen.

If she can’t get out, then Peter damn sure will. He’s not suffering this fate because of her. He deserves to live his life. She gave up hers the second she became the Cat.

The plane touched down with a light thud. If she hadn’t been waiting for it, then she might not have noticed. A quick glance at Peter showed he was still fast asleep. Not good.

Before she could ruminate any further on her situation, Rogers and Wilson were walking back into the room. She stilled and relaxed her body. A small part of her worried they would be able to hear her heart pounding in her chest. It seemed so loud to her.

“Alright boys, this has been fun, but I’ve got to call Rhodey about D.C. or he’ll kill me.” She didn’t recognize the voice, so it must be Wilson. His footfalls echo across the steel as he makes his way down what she assumes is the landing ramp. Two to one. Not great odds, but better than three.   

“Hey Buck,” Rogers this time. “Will you check on their rooms and see if they’re ready? I can bring the boy and we’ll come back for the girl.”

No. No. No. NO. Peter was not leaving her sight. A sudden possessive need to protect Peter from them took over. She idly thought this is what mother’s felt when their child was threatened. Except Peter wasn’t her child, nor was he entirely a brother. No, he was a part of her. If she lost him, there would forever be a gaping hole in her heart.

“I don’t want to leave you alone with them.” Very smart, Barnes, because I’m going to kill you all if you touch Peter.

“It’ll be fine. They’re unconscious and unarmed. There’s not much of a threat here I can’t handle.” Rogers said.

She heard Barnes huff out something along the lines of punk before he too was walking down the ramp. One on one. It was time to move.

When Rogers said they were unarmed she wasn’t surprised, but still, she cast a surreptitious glance around and, like the Captain said, their backpacks were nowhere in sight.

She kept her eyes closed as Rogers moved about the room. Forced herself to breath normally when she felt his eyes on her, though it could have been her imagination, she thought she heard a sad sign escape the Captain’s lips.

Ridiculous really. Captain America may be the most level-headed of the bunch, but it didn’t mean he wasn’t just as evil. To be in this line of work, it was a job requirement.

Her eyes opened when she heard his steps get farther away. He was going for Peter. Not happening, Rogers. The Black Cat has come to play.

She waited until he was about to lift Peter from the bunk to strike. Then, she soundlessly rolled off her bunk and rushed him. The Captain turned around in time to receive a brutal punch to the jaw. He staggered backwards. The Cat didn’t miss her chance to deliver another punch, but the Captain had caught on to her game. He dodged the knee coming for his stomach and delivered his own hit to her left shoulder. She countered with a punch to his sternum.

This is fun, but it’s time to finish it. The Cat reached for anything with enough heft to knock the Captain out. She was rewarded with the barrel of a deconstructed rifle, probably one of Barnes’s. The Cat is grazed by a punch she didn’t fully dodge from Rogers. She raised the barrel to bring it down upon his neck when its ripped from her hand.

An unnaturally cold hand clamps around the back of her neck. A metal hand. It rips her away from Steve and drags her to the other side of the plane. She thrashes violently, but to no avail. Barnes’s grip on her is unshakable. When she’s far enough from Steve, he lifts her by her waist and lugs her down the ramp. She kicks and screams all the way.

“Grab the boy!” Barnes yells back to Rogers. That sets Black Cat off on another rampage. The only thought in her mind is they can’t take Peter. They can’t take him from her.

“NO!!” She screamed. “NO! You can’t touch him! You can’t!”

Rodgers looked reluctant to get Peter and said to Barnes, “shouldn’t we take her to her room first?”

“Let me go!” She screamed at them.

“Just grab him, Steve. I’ve got her.” Barnes barked the orders.

Rogers walked back into the jet to retrieve Peter. The wind sent a chill through Felicia as she realized where they were. Avengers Tower.

More specifically, they were who knows how many stories up the tower on the single plane landing platform. She tried not to think about how easy it would be for Barnes and Rogers to just throw them off the roof. Though, the roofs they kept talking about didn’t calm her down much either. Images of interrogation rooms and torture chambers flashed through her panicking mind.

Barnes is leading her into the tower. She tried in vain to see if Rogers has Peter. Soon, Barnes is dragging her into the tower. Metal and flesh arms doing their best to hold her tight and deflect blows from flailing arms and legs. She looks deranged, but she doesn’t care. Every fiber of her being is screaming at her to get free because Peter is in danger.

By some twisted miracle, her and Barnes make it into the tower without toppling off the landing pad. It's not until she lands a painful kick to his shin that he finally loses any and all patience he had with her. Or, he wanted to save this for when she couldn’t try to push him off a skyscraper.

He throws her onto the ground. Her left arm swung out in a vain attempt to catch her fall and her right tries to hit Barnes anywhere it will hurt. Felcia hits the floor with a thud and is only free for a moment before he has her pinned to the ground. She struggles against his hold, but she can barely move.

His face hovers above hers, a snarl painting his features. For a split second, fear slips inside her and Barnes’s face transforms into one of a wild animal who just found it’s next victim.

“Listen here you fucking brat. I suggest you start cooperating. The only reason you’re not dead in an alleyway is because you’re useful, but accidents happen, especially to the people we care about.” He cast a glance towards the plane. His message was clear: behave, or we’ll hurt Peter to punish you.

She wanted to headbutt him, but the bastard was too far away. Probably planned it that way. He’s still on top of her when Steve walks in with an unconscious Peter in his arms.

Barnes roughly pulls her up to her feet and drags her forward. She’s not struggling for Peter’s sake, but the glare on her face refuses to fade. It was her final act of rebellion. She couldn’t risk anything until she got Peter out.     

They were whisked through hallway after hallway until they finally reached an elevator.

“Take us to the brats’ quarters, Jarvis!” Barnes yelled.

“Right away, sir.” A posh British voice replied. Rogers and Barnes laughed when Felicia jumped at the sound of the invisible voice. Heat crept onto her face. It was bad enough they caught her, but to now be laughing at her lack of complete composer was like a knife to the gut in her life as a professional thief. Great thieves don’t panic when a situation changes. They adapt, improvise, and _thrive._

Her expression hardens to stone, an impenetrable wall facing the metal elevator doors. There are no buttons or floor numbers listed as the elevator moves, which tells her its completely voice controlled. She eliminates it outright as an escape route. The vents are still feasible, but she doubts the security will be as easy to break through here as it was in the Brooklyn building.

The doors open with a near silent whir. Some step out, others are pushed or carried, but either way, they make their way down a hallway.

 _It’s nice enough._ She thinks. Clean floors, paintings from artists she doesn’t know, and windows looking over New York City. _I’ve robbed better._ The bitter part of her finishes.

The first door they pass is opened by Barnes. She’s about to walk in, when he pulls her back to him.

“Not so fast, brat.” He said. “Our stop is farther down.”

She’s about to protest, but a warning look from Barnes shuts her up. She hates this. Having to defer to his rules and regulations to protect Peter. No attachments mean no reason to not punch a mafia boss in the face and escape out of a skyscraper. However, she also knows how lonely her life would be without Peter in it, so she bites her tongue so hard it bleeds and imagines the look on his stupid face when she gets Peter and herself out of this place.  

Rogers carries Peter into the room. Her best friend is set on a plain blue bedspread and the window blinds are closed so the afternoon light has no risk of waking him. She can’t see much of the room from where she’s standing, but it seems big. Well, big compared to her apartment with Peter.

Barnes gives her a shove. A clear sigh to keep moving toward their destination. She doesn’t. Instead, she watches as Rogers moves about the room, the slight rise and fall of Peter’s chest, and she waits, even as Barnes gives her another shove, for Rogers to leave because she is not leaving Peter alone with any of these psychopaths.

“What did I say about behaving?” Barnes’s menacing drawl was close to her ear. She fought the urge bite back a retort of her own. Apparently, she didn’t fight hard enough.

“Don’t do it?” The snark was there, plain as day. Barnes looked furious.

He spun her around to face him, but she merely turned her head to look over her shoulder at Peter. Rogers wasn’t out of the room yet.

A hand, flesh not metal, grabbed onto her chin and yanked it to face forward. Barnes wanted to throw her off the roof. She could feel it with every fiber of her being.

“You little brat, I should,” he began, but he didn’t get to finish because Rogers walked out of the room to take in the scene blocking his path out of the doorframe.

“Bucky, just don’t.” Rogers’s voice sounded weary, as if dealing with them was the last thing he wanted to do today.

“She’s the one being difficult here. Not me.” He said defiantly. Barnes proceeded to shove her to face Rogers as if looking at her would emphasize his point. Rogers just looked at her with a blank face before returning his gaze to Barnes.

“She’s baiting you, and you’re falling for it.” He said.

“She’s a brat.” Barnes mumbled.

Rogers sighed. “She’s a brat, you’re a jerk, and I’m a punk. At this rate we’re a club. Now, let’s get her to her room and be done with it.”

Barnes looked as though he wanted to say more but thought better of it. He directed her towards the end of the hall. She stumbled at the unexpected start, but Barnes’ hands on her shoulder kept her from falling.    

Down the hallway they walked again. She searched for an escape route and the only one presented to her was a vent grate above them. It wouldn’t be difficult to reach, but who knows where it led. In a building this large, she could be caught before she reached a better escape route. This isn’t even factoring in Peter. If she were alone, she would be screaming into a pillow in pure frustration. 

They step through a new door and enter what can be referred to as her bedroom. It’s just as big as Peter’s with the same blue bed. Guest bedrooms. How personal. Barnes stops walking when they’re halfway to the bed. A part of her wonders if he’s about to get into another fight with Rogers about how her behavior should be dealt with. Instead he shoves her to Rogers with a quick, “hold her for a second.”

She tries to struggle out of Rogers’ grip and smiles when he lets out a grunt of pain as one of her shoves twinges the forming bruise on his shoulder. The noise alerts Barnes and he’s back at Rogers’ side in an instant.

His expression looked smug as he said, “what did I tell you, Stevie? Difficult.”

“Never said she wasn’t.” Rogers replied. “Just get on with it, Buck.”

“Alright, Brat. Steve and I got a meeting to get to and you’re going to sit here quietly so we can get some work done. Can you do that?” Barnes asked.

Felicia opened her mouth to speak, but Barnes beat her to the punch.

“You know what, don’t answer that,” he continued, “I’ve got something to help you out.”

Quick as a flash, Barnes sticks one of those little tranquilizers in the crook of her neck. Her world begins its distantly familiar spin out of focus as the edges fade to black.  

The last thing she saw was Barnes’ smug smile before she was lulled into a dreamless sleep. 

* * *

 

As a trained operative, Steve Rogers was prepared for a lot of things. That being said, what he was neither trained nor prepared for was fighting a teenager on a jet and needing his boyfriend to rescue him from said teenager. It wasn’t that he couldn’t admit the girl was a skilled fighter, he could, but it was the fact that he had let his guard down enough to assume both were asleep.

All in all, Steve counted himself as lucky because if the boy had woken up during the altercation, then the girl would have finished him off for sure. Well, that’s not entirely true. A part of Steve crafted from years of military training knew the girl wouldn’t go for the kill. It took a specific kind of person to be able to finish off someone completely rather than subdue them. There was a kind of detachment needed which the girl didn’t yet possess.

It was evident from the way she screamed as Steve carried the boy, he supposes he should start calling the boy Peter, down the ramp and into the tower. Her screams and snarls still filled his mind and he involuntarily shivered at the thought. She might not want to kill him, but it didn’t mean she wouldn’t go for the kill if she thought it was the only way out.

What worried Steve more was Bucky’s interactions with her. He understood the anger especially since Bucky walked in on her trying to bludgeon him with part of a rifle. Bucky’s rifle to be exact. Honestly, their relationship was doomed from that moment on. In Bucky’s Winter Soldier fueled mind, no one hurt Steve, and no one touched his gear without express permission. In the span of five minutes, the girl had done both and then gave Bucky hell as he dragged her off the plane.

Yet, despite her prowess as a fighter, she was still a child and there was enough fear in her eyes when Bucky put the sedative in her neck to haunt someone. It was the look of a kid in way over its head and scared about what the monsters would do to it. Isn’t that how she saw them, as monsters?

Steve banished the thought as quick as it came. It didn’t do to dwell on the moral ramifications of his job. Those thoughts were for late at night when he couldn’t fall asleep.

He watched the girl as she slept on the plush bed. The sedative had only entered her system a few minutes ago, but she was already entering into a deep slumber. With the dosage and her reaction to the past sedative, Steve predicted she would wake up sometime around midnight or one in the morning.  

“Come on, Buck, or we’ll be late to Stark’s meeting.” He turned from the girl and walked out of the room. As he walked past Peter’s room, he realized that Peter would probably be up in an hour or so and made a mental note to send someone down to check on the kid.

* * *

 

The meeting room was full of Avengers by the time Steve and Bucky made it there. Clint was talking animatedly to Wanda and Pietro, making them laugh at whatever story he was telling them, Natasha was pouring over files presumably about their newest residents, Sam would have been there too, but he was off to D.C. for the rest of the week to help Rhodey, and Bruce was quietly sipping his herbal tea in the corner as he waited for the meeting to begin. The only Avenger who seemed out of place as Bucky and Steve took their seats was Tony. Normally the most animated of the bunch, today he looked worn out and slightly solemn. A strange combination for him to have, except for days when past memories were plaguing his mind.

“Alright,” Steve began, “are we ready to start?”

Tony snapped out of his musings at Steve’s words. Sitting up, the billionaire cleared his throat and started to speak.

“Okay everyone. There’s two elephants sleeping downstairs, so who has questions?”

Tony said it as if it they kidnapped teens every day. Steve tried not to grimace outwardly at the thought. Is this really what his life has come to?

“Yeah, who are they?” Pietro was the first to speak up and everyone heard the underlying question. Why are they worth saving?

What surprised Steve, and everyone except Clint and Tony, was that Natasha was the first to speak up.

“Their names are Peter Parker and Felicia Hardy.” She said as she plugged a USB Drive into the side of the table. Soon, Jarvis was projecting files, records, and pictures of the two teens for them to look at as she continued.

“Peter was orphaned last year. His aunt died and he was left with no living relatives, so he dropped out of school and went on the run to keep out of the system. Before that, Clint and I think he was Spider-Man. A Robin Hood type who did a lot of good work in Queens for months before May Parker, his aunt’s, death. We think he met up with Felicia Hardy either when he was working as Spider-Man, or when he was a runaway. Now, he has a job repairing computers and works on Felicia’s jobs when she needs the help. The kid’s a genius, though, his test scores are off the charts, his I.Q. can compete with a number of brilliant minds, and he was receiving high marks at his old high school, Midtown Tech.”

Steve was impressed. This kid sounded like he could be as smart as Tones or Banner. Clearly the others felt the same. The twins were looking at Peter’s picture with the calculating gazes Natasha and Bucky had taught them, Bruce was reading his file with renewed interest, and even Tony gave a small smile as everyone heard of Peter’s intellect.

“And the girl?” Bucky growled out. It was no secret to Steve that Bucky didn’t like her, and he wondered how much restraint it took for Bucky not to call her brat instead.

“Felicia Hardy,” Clint chose to take over and pointedly ignored Buck’s annoyance “is equal parts runaway and ghost story. Her familial records don’t exist on most sites. We had to hack into three government databases just to get a copy of her birth certificate. At first, we thought she hired a hacker to erase her from the system, but we think her parents did it themselves, which wasn’t much of a surprise when we found out who they were.”

Clint cued up a new file and a picture of an older man and woman appeared.

“Walter and Lydia Hardy.” Tony said. “I used to see them at social events Pep dragged me to. That is, before they started refusing to leave Manhattan for anything so common.”

“Wasn’t Walter a thief?” Steve asked. The name sounded familiar, but he couldn’t place why.

“One of the best thieves in the country.” Clint replied. “SHIELD tracked him for years when the guy was still in his prime. He was the original Black Cat, but hung up the mantel, took his money, and started a family. This guy set the standard for thieves for a while. Now, he’s covered his tracks so well, most people think he was a myth more than a man.”

“And what do you think?” Steve asked.

Clint smiled back at him. “Oh, he was the real deal. He just didn’t teach anything to his daughter. Word on the street is she’s a runaway and got all her training from a fence she worked with. Though, she had a lot of natural talent for someone so young, which got her hired out for a lot more jobs. Her career was going great until she allegedly left her old fence and Frank Winston was the only one who’d work with her. Regardless, she’s good at her job. I mean, she robbed you, didn’t she?”

Steve cringed. _Way to poke the bear, Clint_. Steve risked a glance at Bucky, who was fuming in his seat and looked to be another snipe away from leaping over the table and strangling someone. A more common risk in these meetings than people thought.

Bucky looked ready to reply, but Tony cut him off with his laugh.

“You – got robbed – by two teenagers!” Tony said in between laughs. He seemed to be enjoying this fact far too much, but Steve knew a part of this was revenge for the rich boy comments Bucky made at their last meeting. Those two would kill each other one day, Steve was sure of it.

“So, you guys recruited them?” This was the first time Bruce had spoken throughout the whole meeting.

Tony let out a sigh, his laughter fading away. “Pretty much. It seemed a waste to kill them when they had so much potential.”

Everyone heard what Tony wasn’t saying. He couldn’t sleep easy knowing he sanctioned the deaths of two relatively harmless teenagers. Steve wouldn’t have been able to either, and he’s guessing Clint and Natasha felt the same way.  

“I guess tomorrow I’ll have to personally welcome them to the Home for Troubled Criminals.” Bucky said with a sneer.

Natasha bristled at his tone and said, “as nice as that is, Barnes, you won’t be going anywhere near them until your little temper tantrum is over. They beat you. Get over it.”

Natasha’s words left no room for argument and no one with an ounce of self-preservation would defy her, but Steve had the sinking feeling that Bucky would indeed try to do just that. Buck had a score to settle with the girl, and he wouldn’t rest until he could even it out. Steve was left wondering how far it would go and if he would be able to stop Bucky before it got there.

* * *

 

“So, these are the sedatives you used?” Bruce asked as they walked down the hall toward Peter and Felicia’s rooms.

“Yeah.” Steve asked. He was careful not to jostle the two plates of sandwiches and chips for the teens to eat when they woke up.

“Who gave Felicia her sedative?” Bruce continued his questionnaire.

“I did. Bucky gave Peter his sedative and Felicia her second dosage before we went to the meeting.” Steve was about to ask why all this mattered when Bruce continued.

“No wonder the girl woke up when the Quinjet landed.” He said shaking his head. “I’d been going over it since you told me. Do you see this?”

Bruce held up a sedative in the light. In it, Steve could see some fluid sloshing around.

“It’s the injection you gave Felicia the first time around.” Bruce said. He proceeded to hold up a second sedative, but this held no liquid inside. “And this, is one of the sedatives Bucky injected. You didn’t administer the full dosage, instead you gave her about half of it. Combine that with the adrenaline she had coursing through her body, and it’s the difference between a quick nap and twelve hours out cold. I’m going to guess Bucky was more than willing to stab these through the crook of their necks to ensure the full dosage was released into the bloodstream.”

“He was more about efficiency with Peter, but I think he wanted to stab Felicia through the throat with her injection. Do you think it’s safe for her to take more than one sedative?” Steve asked Bruce as they opened the door to Peter’s room.

“She’ll be fine. It would take a lot more than that to even put her in the potential risk category.” Bruce said as he checked over Peter.

Steve laid the sandwich on the nightstand, and soon, the two were off down the hall once again. This time, they entered Felicia’s room and Bruce made quick work of checking her vitals and the bruises long since formed from her fight with Bucky.

When he was done, they made their way out of her room and to the elevator in silence. Bruce looked like he wanted to ask Steve something, but Bruce didn’t say anything until the elevator doors were firmly closed.

“They’ll be up by morning and at full activeness by noon tomorrow. I would send someone to check on them between eight and ten AM.” Bruce paused then said, “do you think we did the right thing bringing them here?”

Steve thought for a moment. Did they do the right thing? Yes and no. It was right to not kill them but recruiting them was a whole other hornets’ nest. So, Steve decided to tell Bruce the truth.

“I don’t know,” he stated simply, “but now that they’re here, we’re going to do everything we can to protect them from this world eating them alive.”

Bruce worried his bottom lip but nodded anyways. Steve would help the kids and he’s sure Tony, Nat, and Clint would be some help. That didn’t mean they would survive this, though. The world was cruel, and the Avengers were crueler. Steve may be the voice of reason, but even he has some demons lurking in the shadows of his subconscious.

Those kids would need to learn how to survive and learn it fast. There was no hope for them otherwise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!! I'm back! This chapter was a constant push through writer's block and I am super happy to be finished with it. On a side note, 12 is my lucky number and this story has 12 bookmarks and its in the 1200s. The 12s are everywhere and its making me so happy!  
> I saw Spider-Man Far From Home on release day and it was incredible. It brought back my Endgame feels and I needed a few days after it.  
> Anyways, thank you for reading my story and I hope you enjoyed it. Have a wonderful rest of your day and I will see you all next time!!


	8. A Meeting of Minds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cell can be ornate or it can be foul, but at the end of the day it's still a cell.

Peter’s mind swam with flickering visions of fights and screams. As he woke though, he found those visions replaced by a picture-perfect bedroom straight out of Aunt May’s design magazines. His head throbbed as he sat up and tried to remember how he ended up here. They were on the run. Then what? Peter groaned as he rubbed his temples trying to piece together the puzzle.

Casually, he gazed about the room and saw a plate containing a sandwich and some chips. His stomach growled and he wondered how long it had been since they last ate. He also wondered where Felicia was. Come to think of it, Peter had last eaten at the train station and that was the last moment he remembers seeing Fel.

Something stirred in his mind as he thought about the train station. How he saw someone who set him on edge. How they were being watched. No, followed. No, chased. They were chased into some abandoned junkyard.

_Barnes._

Peter jolted as the name came to the forefront of his thoughts. Barnes and Rogers had attacked them, then Barnes had injected Peter with a tranquilizer dart. The rest is a blank, so Peter assumes he didn’t wake during the trip to wherever he is.

Panic builds as he takes in his surroundings. One door, which he finds to be locked from the outside, and two windows. Except, the windows look out onto New York City. That’s when Peter realizes where he ended up. Avenger’s Tower. He was locked inside Avenger’s Tower. Quite literally, the last place in the world he wanted to be.

“This can’t be happening.” Peter breathed. Now more than ever he wished Felicia was here. A sick pit of dread filled inside him as he thought of where she might be. Images of her being tortured for information, or worse, dead in the junkyard, flashed through his mind. He forced himself to control his breathing and keep as calm as possible until he could figure something out.

“Alright, I can’t get through the window, so like it or not, the doors are my only option.” He paused. “Also, I should probably stop talking to myself incase they’re watching me.”

Peter was suffering from too much time working with Felicia. Its strange how he’s come to rely on their teamwork to get out of various situations.

Quietly, Peter made his way over to the door and began to lean his weight into it to test for sturdiness. He was disappointed at how strong it was. A quick jiggling of the handle told him it was still locked. He had no other option except to find something to either break it down or pick the lock. 

His search led him to the bathroom where he rifled through the few drawers underneath the sink and the medicine cabinet behind the mirror. There was nothing of use except for basic amenities like a toothbrush, toothpaste, and some soaps.

This was not going well. Peter made his way backed to the bed where he promptly flopped down on his back. So far, he had no way out of this room. If Felicia was here, maybe she could figure a way out. No one could keep the Cat locked up for long. Well, no one, except for the Avengers it seemed.

Peter, so caught up in his internal musings, almost failed to notice the door opening and a figure step into the room.

Tony Stark was not the well-dressed man he was used to seeing in magazines or on the news. In those cases, he was dressed in some fancy suit or another, which would have paid for a month’s rent in Aunt May’s apartment, and he would almost always be standing in front of some invention, which would have paid rent for about fifty years. No, today Tony was dressed in jeans and a faded band t-shirt. If Peter looked closely, he could swear there was some leftover smudges of grease on the genius’s hands.

The two stared at each other for a moment as they both took each other in and assessed danger levels. It was Tony who broke out of the trance first and straightened himself out.

“Hey Bruce,” he called over his shoulder, “this one’s up. I’ll talk to him while you check on the second half of the dastardly duo.”

Peter shot off the bed at the mention of Felicia. She was here. _Right down the hall._

He completely forgot about Tony’s presence until his hand latched onto Peter’s shoulder and pulled him back into the room. Shocked, Peter complied without a fight. Besides, he didn’t know what they wanted, so he wasn’t about to go punching mafia bosses in the face left and right.

“Not so fast, kid.” Tony said as he brought Peter back into his field of vision. “We need to have a little chat, but I was hoping the girl would be awake for it, so we’ll have to push it back.”

“What do you want?” Peter asked.

Tony looked around the guest bedroom for a moment. It looked like he was debating something. “At the moment, I was thinking of taking you out of this room to stretch your legs.”

Peter stared at him. “ _You_ want to take _me_ out of my cell?”

“Hey, this is a damn nice cell if you ask me. Besides, your minor release is entirely dependent on good behavior. I’m afraid the girl set a precedent that’s not working in your favor for trustworthiness or stability.”

Peter stiffened. What had Felicia done? Fear crept its way inside Peter at the thought of her hurt in that room without a familiar face watching over her.

“Alright, I’ll go with you and not kill anyone if I get to check on her.” Peter said.

It was a gamble and he was definitely in no position to be making demands, but he had to try for Fel’s sake. He also made sure to leave her name out of any conversation. Tony Stark wasn’t using either of their names, so there was a slim chance he didn’t know them yet. There was no way he was going to blow their identities.

“Peter Parker’s making demands to his jailor. You’re either really stupid or you got balls.” Tony sighed. “Fine, you can see Felicia and then we’re off. No complaints. No nothing. Got it?”

_Shit._ There go the secret identities. Damn Parker luck. Peter’s not surprised they found out, but he was hoping to escape before that happened.

“Got it.” Peter said.

Tony smirked, “well, right this way, kid.”

Peter followed Tony down the hall but shot past him once the door to Felicia’s room was opened. Peter made a mental note to inform Felicia they were using keycards to lock and unlock the doors. That is, if he got the chance to.   

Felicia looked like she had been involved in a bar fight. Bruises littered her body like a blue and purple map. Sure, Peter had some scrapes and bruises from their capture, but his injuries seemed to pale in comparison to hers.

Vaguely, Peter registered Bruce Banner was watching them from the side of the room with Tony manning the door. Probably to make sure Peter didn’t run out. To where? He didn’t know, but Tony didn’t need to guard the exit, he wouldn’t risk Felicia’s safety by leaving her behind.

A strand of blonde hair had fallen in front of Felicia’s face, which Peter carefully moved back into place. He scanned her for any broken bones and was more than a little relieved to find none. Superficial injuries weren’t great, but he was thrilled she was still intact. He checked her over and held her hand for what seemed like hours. All the while silently willing her to wake up and look at him. He wanted her to know he was here with her if he wouldn’t be allowed to see her again for a while.

All too soon, Tony was ushering him back into the hall. Peter watched Felicia until the door closed on her unconscious form. Tony chuckled at that, but Peter didn’t understand why. At his questioning look, Tony answered, “you two are more alike than I thought.”

With no further explanation, Peter accepted the cryptic answer. The two walked into the elevator where a British voice inquired about where Mr. Stark would like to go.

“My lab, Jarvis.” Tony replied.

Tony’s answer shocked Peter. They were going to Tony Stark’s lab. A distant part of Peter from his time with Uncle Ben and Aunt May was cheering at the thought, but a larger part of him wondered why he would be let in to such a secure place. Rumor had it that no one was allowed there unless explicitly invited by Tony Stark himself.

The elevator doors opened in what could only be described as the coolest room Peter had ever seen. Like ever.

The “Lab” could be better described as a scientific beehive with rooms containing different projects, experiments, and designs. Glass walls showed parts scattered across worktables and tools lining every inch of available space on the solid walls. There was even a little lounge area with a couple sofas, some beanbag chairs, a kitchenette, and a mini fridge.        

“Pepper made me set up the lounge so I could sleep and eat in here. I think it happened after I forgot to emerge for a week.” Tony said as they walked past.

Peter remained silent. He promised good behavior and he didn’t want to risk it by angering an Avenger through some offhanded comment. Besides, being kidnapped isn’t the best breeding ground for pleasant conversation.

Tony watched him out of the corner of his eye, but Peter faced forward. He wasn’t sure where this strength was coming from, but he knew that weakness wasn’t an option. There were sharks circling him and any sign of blood in the water would be met with sharp teeth to make him bleed out.

Tony didn’t talk to him until they reached one of the workshops a little way past the lounge. It was filled with car parts and a wall of records stood proudly. Band posters hung on the walls and pictures of various cars sat idly by waiting to be noticed.

Peter hung back at the glass door while Tony made his way to a table and sat on a metal stool. Immediately, he began tinkering with a carburetor. The next few minutes were filled with the sound of metal clinking against metal until, once again, Tony decided to break the silence.

“I keep the cars in the garage, but I like to bring whatever parts I can to work on up here.” Tony paused his work to look at Peter. “Are you going to stand there, or are you going to pick up that wrench and help me fix this? Come on, kid, I thought you went to that genius school in Queens.”

The frost that licked his insides was not pleasant. If Tony knew about Midtown, then he knew about May. He wondered how long it would take them to find out about Ned and MJ. Or if they already knew. Without a better option, he made his way to the table and sat across from Tony Stark. The wrench felt like ice in his palms, but he dutifully began adjusting the piece Tony had set down.

Tony sighed. “You know what, I’m changing the rules. Good behavior now means not killing, or maiming, anyone and maintaining conversation. My bots can make better small talk.”

“What do you want to talk about, Mr. Stark?” Peter asked.

Tony stilled for a minute before he cracked a smile. “New rule to the recently amended rule: no Mr. Stark. Ever. It’s Tony, or Tones, but not Mr. Stark. Damn, you’re making me feel old, kid.”

“Okay.” Peter said. “What do you want to talk about, Tony?”

“What do you like to do for fun?”

Tony’s smile was relaxed, and his eyes held open curiosity. Peter was grateful that Felicia taught him how to read a mark’s body language. It was coming in handy. Tony was actually interested in getting to know him. Why would you want to be friends with a captive?

“Umm, well. I like video games, movies, and fixing stuff.” It sounded more like a question than a statement, but Tony held a look of victory for getting at least a little bit of conversation going.  

“Fixing stuff?” Tony was examining some washers as he spoke. “I guess that’s one thing we have in common.”

Peter stared at the genius. _One thing we have in common._ Why would it matter if they had anything in common? Warning bells flared to life inside his skull. He didn’t know the full story as to why they weren’t killed on the spot. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that Barnes was fighting to kill them in that junkyard until Rogers showed up. That’s when the injections came into play.

Someone gave Barnes and Rogers the order to keep them alive.

The discovery hit Peter hard. The Avengers wanted something, and they were intending to play nice until they got it. Two could play at this game. Well, Peter would play until he got a way out for Felicia and himself, but until then…

“Umm Tony,” Peter worked nerves into his voice as if he was scared to ask. “What kind of car is this for?”

In an ideal world, it was a good question. In a lab with Tony Stark, it was the perfect question. Tony launched into an explanation of the newest vintage car he had set his sites on fixing up. Going over top speeds and general history. It was like a car manual come to life. The two worked as Tony talked with Peter throwing in the appropriate expressions and various phrases like _‘oh cool, Mr. Stark! Sorry, Tony.’_

Playing sheepish and nervous worked wonders on the genius who was acting almost like a mentor. On anyone else, it would have worked, but Peter had months of training with Felicia under his belt. She was a firm believer in never being too prepared and it was paying off ten-fold today.

That’s not to say Peter wasn’t nervous. No, he was terrified. However, his terror wasn’t for talking with Tony Stark, it was from not being able to see Felicia and not knowing a way out of here. He was trapped and that’s what scared him. Small talk with a genius was child’s play.

So, Peter bided his time and talked about movies. He fixed whatever car part Tony put in front of him all afternoon. It wasn’t terrible, having someone want to work with him like this. It was like Uncle Ben was back again, and if Peter closed his eyes, he could still see Ben’s smile and hear his laugh. Except, it wasn’t the same. Ben was gone and Tony could kill him without a second thought.

“Hey, can you pass me that wrench?” Tony asked. Peter handed it to him.

But Peter didn’t have time to worry about that now. He had an escape to plan.

* * *

 

Felicia didn’t need to open her eyes to know there was someone else in the room with her. She only hoped it wasn’t Barnes coming to enact some sort of ritualistic revenge for bruising his precious ego. She almost cracked a smile at the thought. She didn’t.

Instead, she evened her breathing and relaxed the muscles in her face. Felicia even went so far as to ease the tension in her shoulders so that anyone observing her would only see a sleeping girl and not a tiger waiting for the strike.

“Okay kid, we both know you’re up, so can you cut the act so we can get moving?”

Well shit.

Felicia opened her eyes and the first thing she noticed was the bright red of Natasha Romanov’s hair and the way the woman watched her with a gaze so calculating it was unnerving. It’s like she’s figured out Felicia’s every move in just one look and is strategizing ways to take her out.

“Where are we going?” She asked.

“Stark needs to have a word with you. Peter’s already with him, and I figure you want to see him considering the show you put on yesterday.” Natasha could have almost been teasing her, but that was impossible.

Felicia stared at Natasha for a solid minute until reality came back to her. Stark wanted to talk to her. The words didn’t feel right. Where was the interrogation room? The torture devices lining the walls? None of this made sense.

Still, she climbed out of the bed and made her way to the door. Natasha opened it and walked down the hall, knowing Felicia would follow like an obedient duckling to see Peter.

“Jarvis, take us to Stark.” Natasha called once they stepped into the elevator.

This time, Felicia was ready and didn’t flinch or react when the British voice answered back. A small smile quirked on her lips for a split second and then disappeared as fast as it came.

Initially, she wondered why there were no restraints being put on her, or guards watching her every move. She would have thought that punching Barnes and Rogers would warrant such things. However, none of that was present. Except was it needed? It’s not like she was going to risk getting sent back to her cell for a stupid fight rather than see Peter. Besides, if she did get out of line, Natasha Romanov was more than equipped to subdue her. No matter how much her ego and pride begged her to protest.  

They were halfway through their elevator ride when Felicia decided to break the silence.

“Why am I here?” She forced the quietness from her voice when it threatened to surface and tried to sound strong. If that was possible in this situation.     

Probably for the first time in Natasha Romanov’s life she looked as though she didn’t know how to answer. Her eyes flashed and she looked to be debating something before she finally said, “it would be better if Stark explained it to the both of you.”

The both of you. Peter was being dragged down with her and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Felicia made a decision in that elevator. No matter what happened, she would get Peter out. With or without her.

“Natasha,” the spy may have been surprised at Felicia’s use of her first name, but she didn’t let it show. “If any of you hurt Peter, I’ll kill you.”

The spy looked Felicia in the eye when she said, “I know.”

Elevator doors chimed as they opened onto the floor of Tony Stark’s lab.

* * *

 

Peter almost threw himself over the table when he saw Felicia walk through the door. It was like a weight had been lifted to physically see that she was alright. Well, relatively speaking.

Nasty bruises still marred her skin, but a grin was working its way onto her face the longer she stood next to – oh shit. Peter wracked his brain trying to put a name to the red-headed woman standing next to Felicia. Finally, he figured it out. Natasha Romanov. Felicia’s notes had called her the Black Widow. She was a spy and an assassin. She was dangerous, but wasn’t everyone else here? Weren’t they surrounded by dangerous people no matter where they went in this tower?

His musings were cut short when Natasha began to speak, “Stark, I brought her.”

* * *

 

Tony, who hadn’t looked up from his work in twenty minutes, didn’t realize there were two new occupants to his lab. So, if he almost fell off his chair when Natasha spoke up, that was his business and he would deny the moment’s existence adamantly. Natasha looked at him with amusement and Tony knew his denials would have to come soon because Clint would know within the hour and soon everyone would know a highly exaggerated version of events from the birdbrain.  

“Alright, why don’t you two take a seat.” He said.

Felicia had been a bigger worry than Peter. Tony could tell by now that the kid was a fighter, but he wasn’t violent. Neither was Felicia. In all her time as a thief, she never hurt anyone to get her prize. However, the fight with Bucky and Steve proved she was capable of it. Especially when she felt threatened. So, for once in his life, Tony paced himself to someone else’s speed instead of his own. This conversation wouldn’t be easy as it was. Mixing in hostility and uneasiness was guaranteed to cause an explosion. It would be better to ease them into the icy pool rather than dive right in.

“Where do you guys live?” He asked.

The two looked startled by his question, but he wanted to ease into the topic. Besides, its not like he could ask either one of them about their families.

“I think you already know that considering you tried to kill us on the roof of our building.” Felicia answered.

So much for easing in.

“Look Mr. Stark. Sorry. I mean, Tony. We just want to be out of your hair and if we tell you where Ultron is, can you just let us go? I swear we won’t steal from the Avengers again.” Peter said with a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

And there goes them not diving right in. Now he would have to give them the cold reality.

“Ultron?” He said coolly. “Oh, we found that in your bags ages ago. No, we need to talk about the consequences of stealing our shit and the unique situation you’ve put us in.”

The looks of defeat on their faces were hard to swallow and made him feel more like Howard than he ever wanted to.

“I was the one who stole Ultron. My fence didn’t tell me it belonged to the Avengers, but Peter had nothing to do with it. Let him go. Please.” She spoke.

Peter’s reaction was lightning fast. “No. I helped kill the cameras. I was just as involved as her.”

Felicia looked ready to murder him. Tony saw the way her eyes silently begged him to stop talking. She was trying to reroute Peter’s fate and sacrifice herself. Man, Cap would love this kid, even if she did punch him in the face. Granted, her tendency to get into losing fights might endear him to her more if Bucky’s stories were true.

“Look, we already know what both of you did, but I appreciate the last-ditch effort to save each other.” He paused. “You two have a lot of skills already and ten times more potential with the proper training. We don’t want to kill you, so we’re giving you two a sort of sentence for a crime. You both are going to stay here indefinitely, and we’ll train you. Teach you to be one of us. You both could become Avengers with a little help.”

Felicia looked like she was seconds away from exploding, but he held up a hand. “Nope. Not done yet. You’ll get access to a number of floors, your own rooms, and relative free reign of the place. Step out of line, and you lose some of that freedom.”

“You can’t do that!” Peter yelled.

The sound startled both Nat and him who were expecting that reaction from Felicia.

Tony schooled his expression and said, “think I just did.”

Never in his life had Tony seen two teens who looked more ready to murder him on the spot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!! Thank you once again for reading this story. Sorry my updates have been taking longer. I've been really busy these past couple months. Plus, my original stories have been taking up some of the writing time for One For The Money. On the bright side, I know how this story will end and I'm going to write a full plan for the rest of this story over the next few days.  
> On another note, Taylor Swift released Lover yesterday and I LOVE(R) IT!! See what I did there? I have been playing it nonstop. There are so many cute songs on them and it just makes me so happy to listen to. Also, D23 revealed concept art for Avengers Campus and I am beyond excited! I hope they release another Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker trailer during D23.  
> Anyways, you're comments and kudos always make me smile. I hope you have a wonderful day!!


	9. Star Wars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Felicia spend their first night with the Avengers.

Tony watched as Peter and Felicia were escorted back to their rooms by a reluctant Natasha, who shot him a look which screamed _so much for breaking it to them gently._ Yeah, he would be the first to admit that the news could have been dropped in a much more delicate manner, but delicate was never his style except when he was inventing. If the team wanted delicate, then they should have called Natasha, who can talk circles around everyone, or Steve, who’s just good at it in general. Honestly, Clint wouldn’t have been terrible and at least his delivery would have had some humor to ease the pain.

“That bad, huh?” Steve’s calm voice almost made Tony launch a wrench halfway across the room.

Tony rolled his eyes. “Alright Rogers, do you have a weird alarm in your head that sounds off when something goes wrong?”

Steve smiled as he made his way into the lab. “Actually, I could hear everything. I was in the next room.”

“Snooping now. Even better.” The sarcasm was blatant.

Steve had the decency to look embarrassed as he said, “Nat had me in there in case they took the news worse than either of you were prepared for. I mean, I can personally testify to Felicia’s right hook.”

Despite Tony’s foul mood, he laughed at Steve’s words. He laughed harder when his mind drifted back to the bruises on Bucky and his annoyed grumblings as he sat down about being sore.

Finally, Tony calmed down and asked Steve the question he had been debating all day.

“Do you think it’s just going to be battle after battle with them? I mean, should we have just dropped them off somewhere with new identities and tell the people we killed them?”

Steve sighed before pulling up Peter’s abandoned stool to sit down across from Tony. He idly picked up a socket wrench which he fiddled with until he collected his thoughts.

“I think we’re doing the right thing. Keeping them here.” Steve finally said.

“Why?” Urgency laced Tony’s question. He needed to know an understanding other than his own to why they need to stay. Why they needed to be protected.

“Because,” Steve replied, “Hyrdra’s still looking for them and they decided to send out their best. Our spies spotted Rumlow back in New York. They saw him at Felicia and Peter’s apartment, the docks, and this storage place. They think Peter or Felicia rent a unit there under an alias.”

Tony let out a low whistle. “Rumlow is ruthless. An idiot, but a dangerous one.”

“And for a couple of teens?” Steve said. “They’ll be dead the second they get in his crosshairs.”

Tony nodded in agreement, but his mind was still whirling. Rumlow is a threat, but not a good enough one to keep Peter and Felicia at the tower. It was a cop-out plain as day. Tony couldn’t fathom why Steve was hiding his reasoning, but he would let him have his secret for now. Besides, if worse came to worse, he could have Barnes or Nat pressure Steve into sharing.

It was always fun to poke the bear that was Steve Rogers.

Until then, Tony walked over to a locked drawer in his workshop where he pulled out two manila envelopes. Placing them on the table he waited for Steve to open them.

“Are these what I think they are?” Steve asked as he flipped through the contents of each folder.

“Yep.” Tony replied as he sat down. The world felt heavier than it did a minute ago.

“You want to adopt them?” Steve was still trying to process. Tony couldn’t blame him. He had thought of the idea about two hours after reading their files and didn’t look back. The not looking back part might kick him in the ass later, but it wouldn’t be the first time.

“They’re great kids. Besides, we need the next generation of Avengers if we want to survive.” Tony said.

“How – how did you even do this. I mean, I get Peter, but Felicia’s parents are very much alive and can claim custody of her at any time.” Steve was staring at him like he lost his mind. Maybe he had. Honestly, insanity isn’t as bad as he thought it would be.

“You’re right. It wasn’t hard with Peter. Actually, it was outrageously easy given my occupation.” Tony smirked. “Felicia was a bit trickier. You see, I had to maneuver the legal system, so it looked like she’s been in the foster system since she ran away due to parents who were deemed unfit for guardianship. Obviously, it’s total crap, but no one would know that unless they did some serious digging.”

Steve stared at Tony until his shocked look turned to a grin and a chuckle escaped his lips. “So, you and Pepper would be adopting two teenagers. Good luck with _that_.”

Tony gave him a fake laugh in reply. “Did you read whose names were on each adoption paper?”

That shut Steve up real quick. The poor man almost slipped off his stool when he scrambled to search the documents. He grabbed Peter’s paperwork first in a clear attempt to hope for the best. However, the second file provided much more useful information to the Captain. He looked up at Tony with horror and fear in his eyes.

“You want Bucky and I to adopt Felicia.” Steve spoke slowly.

“Yes. Though don’t think of it as adoption. Think of it as a way to secure their residency.” Tony replied.

“Are you crazy?” Steve exploded. “Have you seen the footage of Buck and Felicia’s showdown? They want to kill each other and it will be up to me to hold them back.”

“No,” Tony interrupted. He didn’t like being talked out of his plans. “You will be endearing Bucky to Felicia and force them to play nice.”

“Easier said than done. You got the sweet one and I got the heavyweight fighter.” Steve looked positively miserable.

“He’s easy now, but I doubt he will be taking this well.” Tony rubbed a hand across his tired eyes. “At least this ensures phenomenal protection from Hydra.”

“Or it makes them bigger targets.” Steve shot back.

Tony looked at him with a wry smile. “When daddy dearest is the Winter Soldier, tell me what kidnapper wouldn’t think twice about nabbing a kid?”

Steve was silent and Tony knew he had won. He needed this. After Peter, he was worried his powers of persuasion were dimming with age, but once again, Tony Stark has proven he ages like a fine wine. Stretching until his back gave a satisfying crack, Tony made his way out of his lab only stopping to pat his friend on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry, Cap. The papers are a contingency. Nothing official until we sign the dotted line.”

* * *

“You could probably build us a blaster, like in Star Wars, and we could use it to get out of here.” Felicia said.

The two were brought to Peter’s room by Romanoff only ten minutes ago. Not a word was said after their informal protest during the walk from Tony’s lab to the elevator. Granted, it’s not like either of them would raise their complaints to someone as deadly as the Black Widow. Now, the two were sitting on Peter’s bed and staring out the window at New York City as it unfolded around them.

“Yeah, except what would win, a blaster or a rifle?” Peter said.

The two paused in contemplation before they replied simultaneously, “blaster.”

It carried on like that for another twenty minutes. The Millennium Falcon went to war with the jet that brought them to this stupid tower, and Hogwarts was determined to be less secure than Avengers Tower, after much argument from Felicia.

“Do you think we’re being watched?” Felicia asked during a lull in their debate.

Peter moved to a sitting position before he looked around the room and studied its edges. “Yes,” he went back to laying on the bed, “but I can’t outsmart it like last time.”

“What do you mean?” She asked.

“When I was in Tony’s lab, he told me a little bit about Jarvis. It’s the British voice who keeps talking to us.” Peter elaborated at Felicia’s confused expression. “Anyway, it’s an AI that runs the building and can access Stark Industries. You can’t go anywhere in the tower without it knowing. I think that’s the system that tried to track us when we launched Ultron.”

Felicia wanted to scream. Of all the security systems to beat, she didn’t think an AI was on the agenda unless she got herself trapped in a science fiction novel.

“Do you think you could hack into Barnes’s metal arm and make it punch him in the face?” Felicia spoke into the silence.

Peter didn’t reply. He was too busy cackling at the mental image of Felicia’s request.

“I feel the need to remind you, Mr. Parker and Ms. Hardy, that once Mr. Barnes gets free from the trap you two are plotting, your health and well-being will be reduced to critical levels.” Jarvis said.

The two stared at the ceiling in shock. Of course, they knew Jarvis was listening, but they didn’t think he would join in on conversations…or have a sense of humor.

So, the two teens kept thinking of ways to kill or incapacitate the Avengers so they could escape, each one more absurd than the last, and Jarvis would give sarcastic responses of their likelihood of survival or chances of success.

Felicia laughed and played the game, but in the back of her mind, plans were building and crumbling at a rapid rate. She knew how hard this system would be to beat, but if no one could do it, then it was up to the Black Cat to be the first.

* * *

The office space was abnormally crowded this afternoon. Tony had called them in without forewarning or an explanation. Steve was leaning against a bookcase next to Bucky while Natasha was standing in the shadows cast by the fireplace, obscuring her face from showing any blatant reaction. Clint, true to form, was lounging in a chair without a care in the world. A more observant person would notice the way his eyes regularly scanned the room and how they tended to linger on Tony from where he sat behind his desk. Pepper, the picture of calm, cool efficiency was standing next to him. A strong guardian of Stark Industries and Tony Stark himself.

When they all had settled into their respective positions, Bruce having finally arrived with a quick apology for being late as he found a spot on the couch, Tony gave an order to Jarvis before they began.

“Hey Jarvis, let me know if the Wonder Twins or the Dastardly Duo near my office. I want them turned around immediately if they try to enter until this meeting is over.”

“Certainly, sir.” Jarvis replied. “Miss Hardy and Mr. Parker are in Mr. Parker’s room, most likely plotting your team’s eminent demise, and the Maximoff twins are watching a film in the communal living space.”

“Thanks, J.” Tony said.

Steve could feel Bucky tense and, he had to admit, he felt the same way. Tony rarely excluded the twins from a meeting. They weren’t fully fledged Avengers yet, but they were close enough. To exclude them meant the discussion was serious enough that Tony desired the utmost secrecy.

“As you know, Peter and Felicia will be staying at the Tower for the time being.” Tony began.

“And here I was thinking they were part of a tour group and got horribly lost.” Clint sarcastically butted in.

Tony rolled his eyes and Natasha slipped from the shadows to hit the archer upside the head.

“As I was saying, they’ll be staying with us for a while and Steve has graciously volunteered himself and Bucky to see to their training so they can begin missions immediately.” Tony smirked as all eyes shot to Cap.

Tony didn’t know why he said it, well he knew why. Bucky looked positively betrayed by the good Captain. He had to cough to muffle his laughs. Pepper unfortunately saw what he’d done and lightly swatted his shoulder. Though she had a smile on her face as they listened to Steve’s spluttered protests that he had nothing to do with any of this.

* * *

Peter Parker. Spider-Man. Best friend of Felicia Hardy. Current prisoner of war.

Well, prisoner of war was a bit of a stretch in his opinion, but Fel thought it sounded more badass. So, he went with it. Maybe that was his problem. Maybe he went along with seemingly insane plans only to confirm their insanity and then suffer the consequences. He could be on a date with MJ or hanging out with Ned, but no, he was trapped in Avengers Tower like the idiot he was.

“What are you doing?” Felicia was looking down on him from the bed. He had taken to laying on the floor after about an hour of being stuck in his room.

“I’m contemplating my life choices.” He replied.

“Yeah, I know that.” Felicia replied. “You’ve been talking to yourself for like ten minutes now. I thought you lost it or something.”

Peter sat upright and stared at her in horror. “I’ve been doing what?”

Felicia shifted so she was sitting crossed legged on the bed, her face tinged red with shame. “For the record, you volunteered for a number of these insane plans and I didn’t hear any of these complaints when you were getting your cut of the profits.”

Peter felt like the biggest jerk on the planet. Well, second biggest. The Avengers probably took first for the time being.

“Fel, I’m sorry,” Peter began. “I didn’t mean it.”

“But a part of you did.” She said.

“Well, that part was an idiot.” He spoke as he climbed onto the bed next to her. He leaned in conspiratorially. “I wouldn’t listen to him if I were you. Can’t be trusted.”

She laughed lightly. “Spider, you are no idiot, but thanks for trying.”

She leaned her head on his shoulder and they sat there for what felt like hours. Neither sure what to do. Peter looked at the strands of blonde hair cascading down his shoulder and let his eyes travel to the soft blue of Felicia’s irises. Where did it all go wrong? More importantly, how did it go so wrong so damn fast? They had it made, then it all fell apart and Peter didn’t do a thing to stop it.

That changed now. If Peter Parker couldn’t save them the first time, then maybe Spider-Man could get them out.

“Do you want to get out of here?” He asked bluntly.

She stared at him to see if he was joking. “More than anything.”

“Well then,” he said as he carefully moved her head off his shoulder to get off the bed, “let’s get going.”

“Spider,” she looked at him suspiciously. “Are you feeling okay?”

“Never better.” Peter replied with a smile.

He walked toward the door and prayed his plan wouldn’t be derailed too soon. “Excuse me. Mr. Jarvis, sir?”

“Yes, Mr. Parker?” Jarvis replied.

“May Felicia and I use the common room to watch a movie?” He asked with the brightest eyes he could muster.

“Certainly, Mr. Parker. However, I must say that the communal area is currently in use by the Maximoffs.”

Peter shot a brilliant smile in the direction of one of Jarvis’s cameras. “That won’t be a problem. I promise we’ll leave if we bother anyone.”

“Very well then. You will find the elevator set to the communal floor once you step in.” Jarvis finished succinctly.

“Come on.” Peter said to Felicia who was sitting slightly dumbfounded on the bed. He didn’t wait for her to catch up as he walked out of the room. Shuffling feet could be heard not long after and Peter barely fought off a grin.

Once she was by his side, he stopped and turned to face her. “I’m sorry again for what I said.” Peter spoke softly, but loud enough for Jarvis to hear. “I didn’t mean it.”

“It’s fine, Spider. I’m over it.” Felicia replied casually.

Blue eyes searched brown for any clue as to what was happening right now. Internally, Peter was smirking. On the outside, he was putting on his best sad eyes and soft smile. Ever so slowly, he outstretched his arms for a hug and, sensing the ruse, Felicia rushed into his arms without further prompting. To an outsider, this would look like a sweet moment of forgiveness between friends. It was anything but.

Peter nuzzled his face into her blonde hair to hide his mouth and whispered softly, “look for weak points.”

He felt Felicia squeeze him a little tighter to signal she got the message. Pulling back, he was awarded with an award-winning smile and a soft peck on his forehead.

“I love you.” Felicia said before she bounded off toward the elevator.

Peter chuckled as he followed after her. Give the cat a puzzle to solve and you would think it’s Christmas and her birthday rolled into one. The two rode the elevator in silence. Peter tapped his foot in a small effort to release some of his nervous energy. Wanda and Pietro were not ideal to have around while Felicia was searching for weak points. Those two were wild cards they couldn’t afford to deal with.

The elevator stopped and the doors slid open to reveal a spacious common area. As they stepped out, Peter eyed a state-of-the-art kitchen and a lounge area filled with couches and chairs. In one such couch sat a girl with brown hair. She was curled up in a blanket and watching the screen flick from channel to channel in boredom. It was strange how domestic she looked, considering she was one half of the deadliest twins in the country.

Peter and Felicia barely made five steps out of the elevator when a new voice spoke from the shadows.

“You know, when Jarvis said you two might be joining us, I thought he was attempting a joke.” Pietro Maximoff spoke as he approached them. His accent was still present, but a year in America had lessened its prominence.

Felicia took a step in front of Peter, but he didn’t mind. He was too busy watching Wanda. She hadn’t moved from the couch, but he could tell she was paying attention to them even as her eyes remained fixed on the television. Clearly, they had planned this little meet up.

“Funny.” Felicia said as she gave Pietro a once over. “You know, when Jarvis said the Maximoffs were up here, I was hoping for something a little more _impressive_.”

A laugh sounded off from the couches and only grew when Pietro’s look of unadulterated offense crossed his face at the insult. Peter let a smile slip onto his face. Be nice. Make a few friends in a pit of enemies. Besides, it was easier when Wanda reminded him of Felicia.

“I think I’m going to like you.” Wanda said as she turned to face them. A soft smile etched onto her face as she ushered Peter and Felicia over with a delicate wave of her hand.

Felicia didn’t wait for her opportunity to pass. She strode over with her head held high like she had come home from winning a great battle.

“So, you two stole from us?” Wanda said once they were all seated. Pietro had shoved past them to reclaim his spot on the plush chair next to Wanda’s couch while Peter and Felicia fell onto the second couch. Too many days of sharing a cramped apartment had made it harder for Peter to be separated from Fel. Instead, he preferred to have her nearby just to make sure no one could take her away from him.

“We did.” Felicia responded. Unwilling to elaborate until she knew what they knew about the mission.

“Were you hired or was this a fantasy of yours?” Pietro snarked.

Peter’s eyes narrowed to slits at the boy with brown and silver hair. Felicia’s hand snaked through his. It was meant to be reassuring though Peter felt anything but.

“That’s none of your business, _Quicksilver_.” Fel drawled as she stretched further onto the couch. Effectively blocking Peter from launching himself at Pietro. “Now, I came here to watch a movie and I heard you were doing the same. So, are we doing this, or should we go back to our rooms?”

There was silence before Wanda spoke up. “No, you can stay. I think we will be getting along well.”

“Alright then.” Peter replied. He liked Wanda even though a part of his brain said she was manipulating them. The twins’ file already said as much. Pietro was egging them on to get a reaction while Wanda was assessing them and coming off as a friend to trust.

Too bad that Peter already had all the friends he needed. His hand unconsciously tightened its hold around Felicia’s waist.

* * *

Natasha wasn’t exactly sure what she was expecting when she went to collect the twins for dinner, but it wasn’t this.

The twins were watching Star Wars with Peter and Felicia. If she didn’t have years of training under her belt, then she would have done a double take. The twins rarely interacted with children their own age, preferring to keep each other’s company if given the choice. However, Pietro was almost teasing as he spoke to Felicia and she sent shots his way right back. Wanda was watching with concealed interest. No doubt pleased to not be forced into conversation. The only outlier was Peter who, though engaged in the meeting, was latched onto Felicia in a manner that crossed between possessive and predatorial to any who would take her away.

Natasha felt a familiar pain in her heart. When she first met Clint, she acted the same way. Determined to keep him around so no one would force her once more into isolation. She watched them for a few minutes more from the shadows and let a soft smile slip onto her face when Felicia intertwined her hands with Peter’s.

“Come on, everyone up.” She smirked when the teenagers jumped at her voice. “We’ve got a dinner to get to and Stark will wring my neck if we’re late.”

The twins stood up to make their way to the kitchen but stopped short when they realized Peter and Felicia made no moves to follow. Natasha could see the uncertainty etched onto their faces. And the fear. They looked so young then, and so terribly out of place.

“Are you coming?” Pietro asked.

Felicia looked at Peter. Interesting, the girl usually held her own.

“No, we’re good.” Peter shook his head. “You two go. I think we’ll turn in for the night.”

The two stood up and began to make their way back to the elevator. Peter leading with Felicia following dutifully behind. She almost came across as shy. Wanda looked to Natasha and the spy could read the unasked question in her eyes. Natasha bit back a sigh. She would have to explain the precarious position the team was in with their new recruits.

Luckily for them, Stark is desperate to win immediate favoritism.

“No can do, kids.” Natasha said. “Stark has ordered everyone present. I only came her to collect the twins, but I’m willing to be the night’s overachiever.”

She smirked when Felicia almost ran into Peter.

* * *

Peter held his breath as they walked into the large kitchen. Apparently, they would be eating in the dining room, but Natasha thought it would be best to wait in the kitchen while the other Avengers arrived. He was relieved they wouldn’t have to sit in an empty dining room, but this wasn’t much better. Pietro was attempting small talk with Felicia, but he could feel the grip she had on his hand tighten exponentially.

He was so caught up in his thoughts, that he hadn’t bothered to notice two newcomers to the kitchen.

“You must be Peter and Felicia.” Pepper Potts said with a smile.

Peter could see Felicia nodding in his peripheral, but he didn’t know what to say. She reminded him of May. May who he hadn’t seen in three months. His chest ached at the thought of her warm smile.

“Uh, yeah.” Peter stumbled over his words. “Nice – nice to meet you, Miss Potts.”

“Please, call me Pepper.” She said kindly. Peter didn’t think there was a mean bone in her body.

“Your work with providing protection to wildlife is unprecedented, and I am a huge fan of your involvement with renewable energy.” Felicia piped in once she found her voice.

“Thanks kid.” Pepper smiled. “You know, I’m going to be doing a collaborative effort with wildlife sanctuaries in Africa soon. Maybe I could get you on the team?”

Felicia’s eyes widened in surprise, but her excitement was short-lived because Tony took that moment to step into the conversation he was shut out of.

“Sorry Pep, but they’ve got some work to do here. So, no trips to Africa to save the giraffes or whatever.”

Pepper rolled her eyes at her boyfriend when she noticed the disappointment on the teens’ faces.

“Tony,” she asked. “When was the last time we took a vacation?”

Tony looked at her in surprise, but answered anyway, “Paris two months ago. Why?”

Turning around to face him, Pepper continued, “a trip to Africa would be incredible for us. All those romantic sunsets.” Pepper leaned in closer to Tony. “Such as shame that you would have to miss it.”

“W-what,” Tony spluttered.

“You said it yourself, you have to stay with them. Which means you can’t come with me to Africa.” Pepper sent Peter and Felicia a wink over her shoulder and they smiled in reply as both began to understand Pepper’s plan.

“I can still go on a trip with you.” Tony said. “Barnes and Rogers can watch them for a week.”

Pepper leveled him with a look. “Please, Steve will bend to their will and Bucky will start a fight before we reach the plane.” She pretended to contemplate the situation. “Clint’s out because, well, he’s Clint. Natasha is smart enough to say no to this. Bruce wouldn’t stand a chance. I guess that leaves you and I as the most qualified pair, so if you want to come, then they should too.”

“You are a master of persuasion,” Tony said, “but I am not changing my mind on this.”

Pepper cupped Tony’s cheek. “We’ll see.” Then she was walking away and letting Tony follow her in an almost trance.

“They would be us if we were in love.” Felicia spoke.

Peter looked at his longtime friend. “Totally.”

* * *

Dinner was . . . tense.

Peter and Felicia were placed near Wanda and Pietro in an obvious attempt to make them more comfortable. Honestly, Peter didn’t quite know how to be comfortable at dinner with his kidnappers. And he thought meeting MJ’s parents was stressful.

It started when Barnes almost punch Tony after Tony asked Felicia how it felt to punch Barnes in the face. Peter was horrified that Felicia took on Barnes and Rogers alone, but Felicia let a vicious grin slip onto her face as she supplied Tony with all the details.

Then, five minutes later, Bruce asked the question that caused momentary chaos.

“Where’s Clint?”

“I sent him to get Peter and Felicia – oh no.” Tony looked horrified.

“Seriously Tony?” Natasha asked. Sighing she made to stand from the table. “I’ll go get him.”

However, before the spy could find Clint, he found them. Bursting into the dining room with panic in his eyes he said, “alright everyone, stay calm. I think we lost the kids, but they couldn’t have gone far. I’ll search the vents, Bucky and Steve can search the floors, and Nat can track them if they’ve made it out of the building. We can do this, people. We just have to,” Clint paused his rant to look at Barnes who was laughing so hard he was at risk of passing out on the spot.

Peter hoped he did for what the jerk did to Felicia.

“Why is nobody concerned?” Clint asked.

Steve, taking pity on the archer, spoke up first. “Clint, look at the end of the table.”

The archer turned to find Peter and Felicia staring back at him with cheeky smiles. Felicia even gave him a little wave with her fork before she dived back into her food. Clint turned back to his team a shocked look still plastered on his face.

“And no one thought to tell me this, why?” He snarked once he collected his bearings.

“Forgot.” Tony shrugged in indifference. “Pull up a chair, super spy. Food’s getting cold.”

Not knowing what else to do, Clint sat down in an empty chair and stared one more time at the teens in assurance that they were really there. This time, Peter saluted with his knife, which almost made Pietro shoot water out of his nose and caused Felicia to choke on her dinner from trying not to laugh.

The meal continued on in a semi-painful silence. Apparently, Peter wasn’t the only one who didn’t quite know how to bridge the conversational divide between captor or captive. The trip to Africa was a nice thought. Peter knew Fel was already planning hundreds of escapes. Besides, they were close enough to Europe that they could border-hop until their trail was untraceable.

However, Peter knew they couldn’t bet on that scenario playing out. If they were allowed on the trip, security would be tighter than normal. No, if they wanted to escape, it needed to be somewhere either chaotic to provide distraction or a location which would put the Avengers into a false sense of ease and complacency. They would only have one shot at escape. It needed to count.

* * *

Tony Stark was lounging on his bed with too much on his mind and too little time to sort it all out. Pepper was laying next to him in her pajamas which consisted of one of his old t-shirts and sweatpants. He didn’t know how someone could manage to look elegant in such casual attire, but Pepper did it with ease.

The dinner was an event, to say the least. Clint’s entrance being the only true high of the evening. Their only saving grace was Barnes not threatening Felicia, but Tony could see how much the soldier wanted to all night. Granted, the lack of threats was due entirely to Cap. Tony witnessed on many occasions where Barnes was kicked under the table, pinched, glared at, or at one beautiful point silently threatened with a fork. It had taken all of Steve’s efforts to keep Barnes at bay, but it worked. The question was, for how long. That man’s ego was burned, and Tony knew Barnes had a rather long memory for those types of offenses.

Shifting in bed so he was facing Pepper, he asked the question on the tip of his tongue since dinner.

“What did you think of the juvenile delinquents?”

“I liked them, Tony. I really did.” Pepper replied.

“That’s great.” Tony let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “I knew you would but having them like you is all the better. It will make the transition so much easier. Especially with Barnes being a moron about all this.”

He trailed off when Pepper’s once happy expression shifted into a sad smile. “What?” He asked. Sounding far too much like a whine for his tastes.

“Tony, they aren’t two strays you picked up off the streets. You can’t keep them here and expect them to like you.” Pepper shushed him when he tried to interrupt. “I know it’s dangerous for them right now, but this team is just as dangerous. I don’t want you, or them, to wind up hurt when this all blows up, and believe me it will.”

Tony laid in bed for the rest of the night mulling over her words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!!!! Welcome back to One For The Money!!   
> I am so sorry it took me so long to update. School has left me with little free-time to actually write and what little time I do have tends to lead to work on my original stories. However, I promise that this story is in no way, shape, or form, abandoned. In fact, I have the entire story outlined to completion, so it will just be a matter of finding time to write. On a totally unrelated note, I saw Star Wars The Rise Of Skywalker on opening day (the chapter title makes more sense now, huh?) and it destroyed me on so many levels. I promised to see it again with a friend and a massive part of me doesn't know if I can do it. Here I was thinking Avengers Endgame was hard.   
> Anyways, I hope you like this chapter. I tried to give you a bit more of Peter's perspective on the situation since you already got to see Felicia's showdown with Bucky and Steve.   
> Thank you to everyone who has read this story and stuck by me. Your comments, bookmarks, and kudos mean the world to me. Hope everyone is having a happy holiday season and I wish everyone a very Happy New Year!!!!!! I love you guys and I shall see you next chapter. BYE!!!


End file.
